


Blind Date

by AmeliaAsherWrites, Wickedly_Hooked (TheDarkOne)



Series: Once Upon a Time - The Pirate and the Witch [3]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Handcuffing, Mild Sexual Content, Roleplay Style, Roleplaying Character, True Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-03 17:01:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 29,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21182897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmeliaAsherWrites/pseuds/AmeliaAsherWrites, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkOne/pseuds/Wickedly_Hooked
Summary: Roni sends Rogers and Kelly on a Blind Date.





	1. Chapter 1

Zelena  
It was a mild evening when Zelena walked down the streets in Hyperion Heights, heading to… well, what exactly, she thought. Something she thought it might not be a good idea, but her sister had made this up. It wasn't that she didn't trust Regina, she just thought it was a bad time. But she had agreed to this and wouldn't embarrass Regina by not going. "Just one hour and I'll be on my way again," she mumbled to herself. During walking she began to reflect what had actually brought her back, and into this… situation.

It had been a long journey for Zelena back from San Francisco to Hyperion Heights. Two days in the car, packed up with everything she owned, and a precious item less she didn’t own anymore.  
The further she got away from San Francisco, the less she felt the pain in her heart. She had had a terrible night before leaving, and she was tired, but she wanted to go as far as possible.  
On her way to Seattle were some moments when she thought life was mocking her, or fate. Whatever. Street signs that showed directions to places like _Hercules_, _Gold Hill_, _Merlin_ and _Jefferson_ made her almost laugh, and she actually made a stop at the _Enchanted Forest_. She took the time to look at the castle at the entrance, and took a map of the fairy tale park with her before she got back on her way.  
She missed the Enchanted Forest and her life with her daughter there, and it pained her that she would probably never go back there. Instead she headed back into the next curse; Hyperion Heights.

It was already dark when she left the _Enchanted Forest_; she would have to look for a room for the night in the next larger town.  
Zelena almost burst into laughter when she arrived 20 minutes later in Salem.  
“Oh great, the perfect place for a witch to stay,” she mumbled to herself, and saw a sign that offered a free room within one mile.  
She stopped at a little guesthouse, and was lucky as the room was still free. A nice, elderly lady was the owner, and everything was neat and clean. Zelena paid her a bit more than $30, and went to bed soon.  
She just couldn’t sleep. She laid in the bed, her eyes wide open and stared at the ceiling.  
Why did this happen again? Couldn’t she be happy once in her life?  
She felt tears rising, turned around, and closed her eyes, trying to sleep. But it was bothering her. Maybe it was true, and villains didn’t get happy endings. But Regina had, and Rumple. Both were happy, so why couldn’t Zelena have a bit of happiness?  
She buried her face in the pillow and thought that life was simply not fair.  
After some time she eventually fell asleep.

The next morning she had only a coffee and was early on her way to Seattle again. Not long anymore, and she would meet her sister again.  
Zelena sighed. Of course she would tell her what happened, she had to, as she had to ask Regina if she could stay with her for a while, just as long until she had found an apartment for her.

It was afternoon when Zelena passed the town line of Seattle. She got more and more nervous, and regretted by now that she didn’t call Regina to tell her she would come. Now it was too late, and Zelena felt more than nervous when she parked her car an hour later near Roni’s bar.  
She could see the sign, and got out, intending to get there. She stopped when she saw the sign of the police station at the end of the street. He would be there. No, both of them would be there. It was ridiculous, and yet…  
Zelena sighed. If he just would remember, she thought, and crossed the street to enter her sister’s bar.  
It was too early for any guests to be there. At the moment she appreciated it. Regina was nowhere to be seen, and Zelena walked to the counter.  
“Regina? Are you here,” she called for her, and used the time to get behind the counter and look for a drink. She found a whiskey, poured it into a glass with two ice cubes, and sat down. waiting.  
It didn't take long until she heard the voice of her sister, surprised who was there as she didn't recognize Zelena's voice at first. Not that she had thought to see her here again anyway.  
"Zelena? What are you doing here, what happened," Regina asked, and sat down beside her giving her a worried look, as she knew only by looking into Zelena's face that something had happened.  
The witch smiled sadly, and in her typical sarcastic way, when she tried to hide her true feelings, she lifted her glass to Regina pretending to clink glasses.  
"Let's say the wedding is off the table." She poured down the drink before she could break into tears.  
Regina's expression turned into a shocked one. "Oh no, I'm sorry to hear that, Zelena. Tell me what happened!" She reached over the counter, and presented the bottle of Whiskey with a second glass. She refilled Zelena's glass first, then poured the golden liquid into her own glass.  
Zelena shrug her shoulders. "What to say - it didn't work anymore. Actually it stopped working ever since I woke up from that curse."  
Regina sighed deeply, and asked, "but both of you were happy when you left after Hänsel kidnapped him. He wanted to marry you, and you…" She sighed again. "If he broke up with you because of your past he'll know me," she said.  
Zelena smiled slightly. "Actually, it was me. I… well, it seems my feelings for him are not enough anymore."  
Regina gave Zelena a questioning look. "What is that supposed to mean?"  
This time Zelena sighed. "Ever since you woke me up, and I remember my real life, I have… a crush on someone else." She mumbled her last words, as she felt a bit embarrassed now.  
Regina bent closer to her. "You have a crush on someone from the Enchanted Forest? Who?" Regina couldn't believe that she had never noticed.  
Zelena felt her cheeks burn. "It's… complicated. And I don't want to talk about it anymore. Fact is - I'm here again, without a fiancee and alone again. Can I stay here for a while until I managed to find an apartment?"  
Regina nodded. "Of course you can, your room's still there for you. You can also move in completely again."  
"Thanks, sis," Zelena said, and Regina could see how upset and unhappy she was. Maybe she just needed someone who pushed her a bit into the right direction.

An hour later Regina had asked Zelena to run some errands while she was serving the guests. She saw Rogers coming in, and an idea struck.

Meanwhile Zelena bought some new alcohol and decoration, and carried everything into the cellar. Regina appeared, and told her that she had a meeting today with a customer, but couldn't make it.  
"You'd do me a big favour by going, it's a nice young man, and who knows - maybe you like him." Regina smiled brightly at her.  
"Gina, I really… not today, not after what…" Zelena sighed. She knew Regina too well, she would manage to talk her into this anyway. "Fine, I'll represent you. But forget the idea about this being a date."  
Regina beamed at her. "Thanks, big sis. 7 pm at the Palisade Restaurant. Have fun!"  
Saying that Regina left her, and Zelena rolled her eyes. "Oh great," she mumbled, and looked at her watch. One hour to go, she should get ready.

When she eventually arrived at the restaurant she was glad she had chosen to dress up elegantly. The Restaurant had a fantastic view over the bay, and Zelena was led to a table where someone was already sitting at. _Must be the customer,_ she thought. He was sitting with his back to her, and Zelena could only see that he had dark, short hair. She stepped around the table to greet the man. "Good evening, I'm Z…"  
The words wouldn't leave her mouth when she realized **who** the ominous business partner was; only that Zelena knew he wasn't. She stared at Killian, unable to say anything.

Killian

After a relatively easy day at the precinct--no last minute emergency calls, no apparent subterfuge plots by the lackeys of the Rockfords, and a damn good pot of coffee to pull him through the day with smooth sailing--Detective Rogers left work with a smile on his face. He even left slightly early since he had caught up on all the paperwork that had been piled on his desk for the last month. It was a good day.

He had even been greeted warmly by Roni at the bar and offered a date with her sister.

_”A date?”_ he asked with a disbelieving expression of bewilderment on his face.

_“Well, why not?”_ she asked as she walked away from him. She continued to speak with her back to him while she feigned at cleaning the already sparkling counters. _“You’re always alone._

_”I am not!”_ he interrupted.

_”Yes, you are. Weaver doesn’t count. I’ve never seen anyone hanging on your arm. You’ve been single for too long.”_ She turned around quickly, already on the defense. _“And before you say no, I’m not suggesting anything serious.”_ She raised a shoulder in a slight shrug. _“Just… for fun. What do you say?”_

Aidan stared at her, a frown wrinkling his brow. His thoughts were busy trying to find any number of excuses. _His cat ran away._ But he didn’t have a cat and Roni knew it. _His car needed an emergency tune up._ But no, that was a petty excuse. _He hasn’t dated since Milah._ That one was true, but it was also too pathetic to mention aloud.

When he lowered his gaze to the drink in his hand, Roni rounded the corner and leaned against the bar facing him. _“Look, we’re friends right?”_ she asked, her hand on his shoulder. _”I wouldn’t set you up with anyone I didn’t trust. It’s my sister. Just one date. For fun.”_

When Aidan looked over at Roni, he saw a twinkle of mischief in her eyes. _“Alright. Fine. One date.”_

Her hand popped him on the shoulder as if that sealed the deal and a broad grin lit her expression. _”Great! Meet her at this restaurant at seven.”_ She set a handwritten note on the bar in front of him which told him she had intended for him to go on this date before he even agreed. He frowned at her in response but she was already walking away from him as she spoke over her shoulder. _”And if you stand up my sister, I’ll make you pay for it!”_

_ _

And this was how Aidan found himself at the Palisade Restaurant overlooking Elliot Bay with rows of sailboats and a setting sun for a view. Had Roni selected the place because he enjoyed sailing on weekends or was it the romantic atmosphere? It certainly didn’t seem like a ‘just for fun’ type of restaurant but a more intimate and expensive place. He would have expected a place more like Roni’s Bar for ‘just for fun.’

He was drawn out of his thoughts when the maitre d'--and Aidan blinked at the fact that the place had one of those--offered to take him to his table. He felt like a fish out of water. Despite the lovely view, this place was not _him._ “Uh, aye. Yes,” he corrected himself, “Thank you,” and followed to the table as he realized Roni hadn’t mentioned how he should recognize her sister.

The table was already set up with two wine glasses and the place settings were impeccable. He sat and faced the window and watched for a few moments as a sailboat passed by on the rainbow of water reflected by the orange sunset. It was far too romantic a scene for him and he was getting second thoughts. Roni had threatened to make him pay if he stood up her sister, but it would be worth facing. This was bloody ridiculous.

He stood suddenly--intending to leave--when he came face to face with a woman nearly as tall as himself. She had been approaching the table and stopped as well. His mouth opened slightly in surprise. She looked nothing like Roni, so he assumed she must be another patron at the restaurant, but there was something familiar about her. “I apologize,” he said quickly as he realized he was standing in her way. But then he also realized his table was in a corner and there was no other table she could have been heading to. An expression of slight amusement crossed his face as he realized how ridiculous he was being at trying to flee like a coward before even meeting the woman. “Are you… Roni’s sister?” he asked, the amusement turning up the corners of his lips.

Zelena

He was just standing up when she turned to him and was now directly on one level with his eyes. Almost at least. "Yes, I am," she managed to answer his question.  
There were a lot of different things coming to her mind. It was surely no coincidence that he of all men in the world was here. How did Regina know?  
But this was still Detective Rogers, cursed Nook. He didn't recognize her, did he? But he should. He and Weaver had arrested her, set up things to find evidence in her car so she would help them.  
"Zele-," she only realized now that she had to use her cursed name. What has it been? Right.  
"The name is Kelly, Detective Rogers."  
It was difficult to think. He surely would remember her, wouldn't he?  
She felt her heart beating so hard that he must hear it! He had been the reason she broke up with Chad, because she had mumbled his name at night. More than once.  
She felt her cheeks burn again. Maybe fleeing was an option, but it would be ridiculous.

Killian

He was almost taken aback when she called him Detective Rogers. Raising an eyebrow at her familiarity, he figured perhaps Roni had told her about himself yet she had told him nothing about her sister. Yet still, there was that trace of familiarity that was tickling at his mind.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you, Kelly, but please, call me Aidan." Gesturing at the table, he took a step back to pull her chair from the table. Seeing her face flush, he assumed she may be nervous or just as uncomfortable as he was. He could already feel his breath collecting in his lungs. Directing the discomfort elsewhere in jest might help ease the situation. Speaking quieter, he said, "It seems your sister set us up at a rather... nice establishment. I suspect the maitre d’ has a permanent scowl from being so pretentious." He smirked lightly to try to diffuse the situation because he recognized the signs of a suspect about to run. “This place isn’t of my choosing but if you’d like to stay and have dinner with me, I’d enjoy dinner with you.”

A touch of vulnerability would show in his eyes as he stood there waiting to see if she would reject him at face value.

Zelena

Was it possible he didn't remember her? Zelena narrowed her eyes slightly. He was a Detective, he must remember her!  
Or was he only fishing, waiting for her to say something first?

Her confusion grew when he offered her to call her by his (obvious) first name and pulled her chair from the table so she could sit down  
"Thank you," she just said, as she couldn't (yet) bring herself to call him Aidan, and sat down.  
Damn, he had arrested her, he did even shoot at her! And yet… here he was, looking as handsome and attractive as ever, if he could only remember!  
Zelena was torn between her feelings for Killian, and Aidan Rogers whom she didn't know at all.  
Despite the chaos she felt inside she realized that she had to say something.

"Well, my sister can be… unpredictable. But it would be a shame to waste the reservation, wouldn't it?" Zelena locked onto his eyes, trying to get a feeling for his mood, his character.  
"I would like having dinner with you, the question is, if you are allowed to have dinner with _me_."  
Her heart was still throbbing loudly in her chest. _Detective Rogers_ seem to hide his intentions quite well. Bloody pirate.

Killian

After Kelly sat, Aidan joined her. Nodding at Roni's unpredictableness. But then she asked if he was allowed to have dinner with her and the first thing that came to mind was for him to jokingly ask if she was a felon--his mind going directly to work which he had not wanted to happen in his off-time. "Why? Have I arrested you before?"

And that's when he realized exactly why Kelly _Greene_ looked so bloody familiar. She might even notice when his facial expression shifted from calm to alarmed and then embarrassed.

He and Weaver had convinced Tilly to plant evidence in Kelly's car so that they could arrest and blackmail her into working for them against the Rockfords. She was a highly-esteemed party planner and had connections with the mafia family. Only the trio hadn't considered how feisty-natured the redhead would be. She fought back and ran, attacked Weaver, and Aidan had shot at Kelly. "Oh bloody hell," he moaned as he stared at her, remembering. It had all fallen through shortly after arresting her. Rogers had to take Tilly home and by the time he arrived back at the precinct, Weaver told him it was over and to forget about it. Something bigger was going on that required their attention, and he had, for the most part, forgotten all about it. Until now when the supposed-drug-smuggler--obviously framed and completely innocent-- was sitting in front of him. As a date. He would have to deal with Roni later for this. As if she could have known...

He ran his tongue over his suddenly dry lip and cupped the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Er," he said trying to arrange his thoughts in order to answer her question, but he wasn't sure what he could divulge. Admitting mistake or even a con and she could sue him. Having an attorney like Teegan Whatever-Her-Surname-Was-These-Days after him was the last bloody thing he needed.

Zelena

While waiting for his reaction she didn’t look away. She wanted to see if he was playing with her or actually didn’t remember.  
She got her answer a moment later. Zelena smiled innocuously when he made fun about having arrested her, and her smile turned into a grin when she could see his expression changing. For a moment she thought he would faint, or run away, but she could tell from the slight reddishness of his cheek that he had just realized who he was dealing with.  
She enjoyed this moment a bit, but she didn’t want this to stand between them. She had no idea if Kelly would have taken the opportunity and embarrass him even more, but Zelena didn’t want that. He was cursed, and once he woke up (and Zelena was sure he would at some point), they could both laugh about that. Now, Zelena felt only tempted to tease him a bit.  
“Yes, I guess you could say that, Detective,” she replied to his little outburst.  
She leaned a bit forward, and put her chin on her folded hands, scrutinizing him. It was obvious that he didn’t know what to say, and eventually Zelena chuckled, and leaned back in her chair.  
“So, for the moment I only have two questions, Detective.” She gave him a coquettishly look, and smiled warmly by saying “First, are you allowed to have Dinner with a woman you arrested before, and second - is your offer still up to call you Aidan?”  
She hoped her questions made it clear to him, that she wasn’t angry at him anymore.

While she waited for him to recover from the mild shock, she thought how lucky she was that Regina had woke her up, and what an unbelievable coincidence it was that Regina had chosen him of all people, to date her. She couldn’t know about her crush on Killian, she had never told anyone.  
_Coincidence or… fate?_ Zelena thought and grabbed for her glass of wine to take a sip, not taking her eyes off Killian. Aidan.


	2. Chapter 2

Killian  
He was still speechless for a moment after she asked him her two questions. But he noticed she didn’t seem angry at him for what he’d done to her. How could she not be? She should be furious. She had been at the time; screaming, kneeing his partner in the groin and punching him in the face, the slur of insults. She should be giving him hell right now. But she was grinning and sipping at her wine with confidence and asking if he was permitted to eat with her and could she still call him by name. She didn’t seem angry. Perhaps she had the ability to let it go. Or was she holding back and waiting for the moment to throw her wine on him?

A huff of a laugh escaped and he reached for his own wine glass, figuring he was damned either way. “What the hell? As you said, it would be a pity to waste the reservation. And ‘Aidan’ will do.” He held up the glass to clink to hers if she was in a forgiving mood, and was simultaneously ready to stand if her wrist twitched to throw her glass at him. He knew he deserved it.

Zelena  
It was still exhilarating to watch him, seeing him reacting and probably asking himself why the hell Zelena was smiling. If he only knew…  
Well, at least he seemed to have the courage to stay.  
“Well then, Aidan, it’s nice to meet you again, I’d say.”  
She clinked glasses with him, without throwing it at him of course (she didn’t even think about that), and took another sip, eyeing him.  
“So, I guess we both have to have a word with my sister. Although I have to admit I’m thankful she didn’t send me on a date with your partner. You’re clearly more charming.”  
Zelena took her time now to just look at Killian. Aside from the clothes he was wearing now, a button up collared black shirt, black slacks ,and the artificial hand he wore instead of his hook, he hadn’t changed. Zelena liked that he still seemed to prefer wearing black, and she was attracted by him. Of course she was, after all he was the reason she broke up with Chad.

The waiter came to their table, intending to take their order.  
“We haven’t had the time to look up the menu yet, but I’d like to have some olives please, along with bread.”  
Zelena waited for Killian, and when the waiter walked away again she asked “So, would you care to tell me a bit about the man behind the Detective? And how did you end up here, with me actually.”  
Zelena chuckled. “Please don’t tell me my sister blackmailed you to come here, as she does it sometimes.”

Killian  
Even attempting to fathom the idea of Kelly being set up with Weaver was laughable. His short-fused partner might be the one to be throwing his wine at her. But Aidan had to wink at her when he said, “You’ve caught me on a good day. I’ve my more devilish days.”

She also seemed much more charming than the last time he’d met her. Still no threats turned against him...

Now he was over-analyzing everything she was doing and saying, he realized and tried to relax, sitting back in his own seat and took a sip of his wine.

The waiter arrived at that point which gave him a moment to watch Kelly as she ordered. She seemed like an entirely different person. Perhaps there was more to her than originally seen and again he regretted what he had done. How could he have done such a thing to her simply because she worked a few times with the Rockfords? His obsession over the twenty year old case was too great if he was starting to hurt innocent people. It was time to relax, to try and live his life outside of work. And that must have been exactly why he had agreed to this date when it was offered.

He glanced up to notice the waiter looking at him expectantly. “Ah, the cheese plate,” he said dismissively and gestured the fop away with his prosthetic hand. He didn’t give a damn about cheese plates but it seemed like something to pair with olives, maybe. The waiter wandered off and Aidan kept his eyes on Kelly as she spoke, taking another drink of the wine.

And when she said the word ‘blackmail,’ he inhaled the drink, instant fire lighting his windpipe. His eyes flew wide and he strained trying not to cough. Setting down the glass, he covered his mouth with a fist, wheezing, his eyes watering as he stared at her. Did she say that to draw out a confession from him about the prior year’s set up? He should have known better than to think she had moved on without an explanation.

But still, still he couldn’t admit anything. Focus on the actual question. When he could catch his breath without choking again, he shook his head. “No. I consider Roni a friend. I get caught up in work and stay for days with little sleep. I go to the bar a few times a week to unwind, recharge, be sociable. Better to drown in wine than in work, aye?” He nodded at the glass in light accusation and smirked in spite of himself. “But, she did tell me that I was going on this date or else.” He omitted the part about her informing him he was always alone.

Thinking on it, he’d never seen Kelly at Roni’s before and since he was a regular customer, he thought he knew all of her patrons. How could he not have known Roni had a sister? “You don’t live in the Heights,” he added upon realizing.

Zelena  
His eyes were sparkling again. Every time he smiled he also narrowed his eyes, and there was this sparkling. Zelena loved when he was smiling.  
She could sense that he seemed to relax a bit, and maybe feel more comfortable with the idea of sitting here with Kelly Greene, and having dinner, chatting.

Once he ordered the cheese plate she smirked approvingly. She intended to add that the cheese had been a good choice as it went well along with olives and bread, but before the words were spoken Aidan (she had to think of him as Aidan, she told herself) inhaled his wine instead of swallowing it.  
Zelena was alarmed for a second, as this reminded her of Killian clutching his chest in pain. But the moment passed, as she knew this man was healthy. At least she hoped he was. She saw his eyes watering, and couldn’t help but snigger when she realized _why_ this had happened. She didn’t intend to be ambiguous, did she? Maybe her subconsciousness had suggested her to say that. However, this was kind of funny, and she covered her mouth to hide her laughter, and handed him over her cloth napkin.  
“Are you alright,” she asked, and added, “I’m sorry, it wasn’t my intention to make you choke on your wine.”

Luckily Aidan seemed to recover quickly, and Zelena leaned back again, managing to suppress any more giggling. She listened to him, and nodded when he mentioned it would be better to choose wine over work.  
“I prefer a drink, whiskey or sometimes even rum,” she commented. “Do you like rum, Aidan?” She almost had said _Killian_ again. Damn.

She sighed when he stated the obvious that she probably wasn’t living in Hyperion Heights, something she had to set right now.  
“You’re right, I wasn’t living here. Except for some time when Roni needed my help. However, we never met in her bar. But, as things happen, I just moved here. Actually, I arrived today, and to be honest - I didn’t have the least idea I’d have a... “ She hesitated by using the word _date_ again, as she wasn’t sure Aidan saw this as a date. In fact, it was a set up. Zelena almost began to giggle again. There it was again, this ambiguity.  
“...I would meet someone today,” she finished. “For having dinner.”

Right in time the waiter came back with their order, and Zelena realized that they still hadn’t looked up the menu.  
“I think we should choose something to eat, otherwise the poor guy might feel urged to show up every five minutes and ask.”  
She opened the menu, and was quite shocked when she saw the prices. Regina might have made this reservation, but Zelena was sure she didn’t intend to pay.  
_Aw, to hell with it,_ Zelena thought, and decided to simply not care about any prices. Although she wasn’t rich, but Chad had paid her off for some furniture.  
She put the menu away when she had made her choice, and looked at Aidan.

Killian  
It was nice seeing Kelly snicker--even at his expense--and smile back. He was sure he had misjudged her the prior year completely because so far, the evening was still enjoyable. She mentioned her own drink preferences and he nodded agreeing that all of those choices were good.

The waiter returned again and Aidan barely glanced at the menu before picking out something in the meat section. He wasn’t picky over food. Anything was better than what he usually ate whenever he had time to eat. “And bring two glasses of rum.”

She seemed to be very specific about this dinner not being what it was intended. And just to devil her a bit, he added, “How fortuitous it is that we were both available for a _dinner_ then. Welcome to Hyperion Heights, officially.”

The sun was just settling further below the horizon of the bay. It really was a nice view. “Have you ever been sailing?” he asked as he nodded toward the window. There was a nostalgic undertone to his voice as he watched the sails drift by.

Zelena  
The waiter came back, and after Aidan had ordered, she placed her order too. A vegetable lasagna would do it, and she raised her eyebrows in amusement when Aidan ordered rum for the two of them. Zelena bit her lip when he set an accent on _dinner_. She hoped he wasn't feeling rejected, but Zelena didn't want to mess things up by 'forcing' him to be on a _date_ with her. And she felt the need to make that clear to him.  
"Aidan, don't get me wrong here, I enjoy this actually very much, sitting here with you, talking, having a bit of fun, but I understood we were both… _maneuvered_ into this situation, and I don't want you to feel forced. What I'm saying is, I can just _hope_ this is a date."

Zelena blushed a bit and drank some wine so she could say her red cheeks were a result of the wine.  
"And thanks, this is actually a nice welcome, although… surprising too." She smiled again at him.

She turned around when he nodded to the window, and knew why he had drawn her attention to look at it. "It's wonderful," Zelena said, and she quickly turned back to him when she heard his words; and _how_ he said it. She was touched, and had to swallow.  
"In fact I have been sailing once, and if you believe it or not - I was on a real pirate ship with a Pirate as Captain."  
She hesitated for a moment, and then asked "I guess you have heard of Captain Hook? Have you ever sailed, Aidan?"  
She breathed a bit faster as she was curious if the name "Hook" would trigger something in him.

Killian  
“Of course. It’s a date,” he nodded. “Trust that I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be.” His tone was gentle and placating. She seemed to have gotten nervous again when she wasn’t chuckling, and he hoped it wasn’t on account of something he was doing.

He tapped a finger to his lip as he thought on what she was saying. Pirates and pirate ships. She’s had some romanticized adventures in the past it seemed. That was likely a hint at what she likes to do on dates, he assumed. Lowering his finger from his lip he gestured. “To make it more officially a date, we can walk along the harbor after we eat. Perhaps you’ll see other pirates there.” He winked in jest. “I’ve noticed no tourist companies boasting a Captain Hook but perhaps you’ll get lucky again if that’s the sort you fancy.” Thinking she must have gone on one of the Enchanted Evening Tours or some such event at some point in time, that would explain it.

“And I sail as often as I can. If I’m not working, I’m likely out there.” He nodded toward the window again.

The waiter return then with the appetizers, setting the olives and bread platter and cheese plate upon the table. The two glasses of rum were also set before them both. Aidan lifted his glass. The aroma was strong but he was sure it was a good selection.

The thing he was most enjoying about the evening was when she spoke. She would become very animated and there was a sort of passion behind her eyes, especially when she mentioned sailing—something he could certainly agree on. He shook his head. “You’ve only sailed once. Perhaps I can take you out sometime. Tell me about the time you’ve gone,” and then he lowered his voice to say with humor in his tone, “with Captain Hook,” still thinking it must have been a tourist company with extravagance and historical tales about the Golden Age of Piracy with a bit of fantasy added for fun. “Sounds like a grand adventure.”

Zelena  
Hearing he thought of this as a date made her happy and her hopes were rising. And yet she reminded herself to take it slow and anticipate not _too_ much, although it looked promising.  
“I like being on a date with you,” she said and listened to him.  
Sailing seemed to be a real hobby of him, and she was fond of his idea to take a walk along the harbour later.  
“I’d like that, I like ships, and I like water. But I hate fish, I have to admit.”  
She chuckled over the last part of his words, and said carefully “Oh believe me, there will be a pirate.” She gave him a long look, smiling a secret smile. Then she took her eyes off his, and said “to be honest, I didn’t think you have time for sailing. What happens if your grey old partner needs you while you’re on your ship? Wait; do you _own_ a ship or rent one?”

The waiter came and brought the appetizer. Zelena lifted her glass or rum too, and smelled on it. “I know someone who likes this very much,” she said. “In fact - he’s a pirate.” She giggled and tasted a bit of it before she put the glass down.  
“I’d love to take another tour on your ship, but be warned - I’m very curious, and I’m a bloody beginner. But I don’t insist you put on… a pirate costume.” That was close. She almost had said “put on _your pirate clothes_”. She hoped he didn’t think she was some kind of crazy with all that pirate-talking.

“So, my first trip on a ship was some time ago, in another place. I was friends with someone who turned out to be a pirate in his private time, and he loved sailing, like you do. Every moment he could afford, he would gather his crew, and sail out with his ship. It was a two masters, and it even had cannons on board. So, one day he offered me to take a tour with him, and that’s when I had my first trip on the sea. On a real pirate ship, with Captain Hook.” She laughed, a silvery and happy laughter.  
“He let me steer for a while, and showed me how to set sail. We even met a mermaid, and shared some rum in the captain’s cabin.”  
She was a bit lost in memories, and realized after she finished talking, that she must sound odd.  
“I’m sorry, you must think I’m living in a fantasy world,” she said smiling. “But I assure you, I’m completely sane, it was just… a grand adventure.”

Zelena snatched an olive and stretched her hand out to get some cheese. The plate was standing close to Aidan’s glass, and his hand was still there. Although not intended, but Zelena touched him when she was about to steal some cheese. She pulled her hand back, more quicker than it would be normal, and felt her cheeks burn.  
Touching on his hand felt like a tingle on her skin, and she was surprised about the moment. To cover this moment she quickly grabbed the basket with bread and offered it.  
“Like some bread?”

Killian  
“If work is calling, then that is where my duty takes me. But when I’m out on the waters, my phone stays in my apartment. It’s better to be free of modern technology out there but I’m mindful of when duty hours are. It doesn’t happen often, but I get out enough to satiate that need.”

Aidan kept his expression passive while he listened to her speak of her adventure. Only the slightest raise of an eyebrow would shift his features. What he couldn’t decide was if she was actually speaking about the tour group or if she was part of a fantasy group that did these sorts of things on the weekends. Pirates don’t actually exist, but people dress up as them for entertaining guests for compensation. That must be what she was referring to, he decided. And then she mentioned the mermaid. That caused him to blink in surprise. A manatee, perhaps?

She said she was completely sane, but he was doubting that, especially after their first encounter which he had almost dismissed until now. And he’d just invited her to go sailing with him on the open waters… where she could attempt something nefarious. At least he was a very good swimmer.

He swirled the rum in his glass, thinking on how he could possibly respond to such an impossibly imaginative tale. Best to focus on the rum. “Rum reminds you of your pirate friend, I see, but I hate to disappoint you; I don’t have any pirate clothes. I’m a cop. Quite the opposite of a pirate, being law-abiding. And I’ve no ship. Just a sloop, actually. One mast. I can’t be your pirate, if that’s what you’re looking for.” He’d found that he had little appetite for the food. He glanced briefly at his watch on his left wrist, feeling guilty as he did so, but the restaurant was becoming more constricting now as he questioned Kelly’s sanity.

Her fingers grazed his right hand and he looked up at the contact, but didn’t retract his hand. “No, thank you,” he said, declining the bread and pulling at the neck of his shirt with the prosthetic hand. “Actually, do you… want to get out of here? All this talk of the open, fresh air... I’d like to go outside.” What he didn’t realize was that all the pirate talk was causing his head to pound and his heart to race, but figured he was just becoming uncomfortable in the confines of the restaurant. He’d never been claustrophobic before but he was feeling it in that moment.

Zelena  
Her tale about him in the Enchanted Forest was probably a bit too much. She felt that he must think she was mad, and it hadn’t worked to trigger memories. Of course it didn’t work, he was under a curse, and just mentioning some things he did, or loved wouldn’t have any effect.  
She sighed inwardly, and regretted to have used the word ‘pirate’ too often. Even worse, he must think she was in love with that pirate in her tale, what was actually true, he just didn’t know that _he_ was her pirate.  
She pressed her lips together before she took a sip of her wine.  
“Pirate costume or uniform, Detective, I’m attracted to both. And I’m not _looking_ for my pirate, I’m looking for someone interesting, clever, smart, funny and maybe a little bit swashbuckling. Someone like you, Aidan.”  
While saying his name she actually realized that she had named him quite a few times now, hopefully not so often that he felt uncomfortable with it.

“Maybe we should simply skip the pirate topic,” she suggested and put down the basket with the bread. When she looked at him again he seemed to feel… unwell. His was pulling at the neck of his shirt, like we had trouble to breathe, and asked her to leave.  
“Of course we can go, are you not feeling well?”  
Zelena stood up, and rounded the table to give him a helping hand if that would be necessary.  
Was he maybe…experiencing heart problems? Like in the Enchanted Forest? _No, of course not, he’s a Detective, he wouldn’t work in this job if he would,_ Zelena chided herself.  
Nevertheless she was worried, but maybe he just needed fresh air.  
“Come on, we go outside. I’ll get the check and let Regina pay it later.”  
She simply linked arms with him to support him a bit. “Is your ship anchored in this harbour,” she asked.

Killian  
"I'll be fine once we're outside, and I'm paying. It's my welcome gift to you as a new resident of Hyperion Heights." He stood up from the table and looked at her curiously as she linked arms with him. How could she say she was looking for all of those things and compare him to that? "But you don't even know me," he said, wondering how she could judge him after such a short acquaintance. Nevertheless, he found her interest endearing. The swashbuckling comment nearly made him laugh. Sailboats and swashbuckling might go hand in hand to some. "I don't know if I can buckle any squash, but I'll make an effort," he said after dropping some cash at the maitre d' stand and explaining that they have to leave on an emergency. "No ship, love. Just a sailboat," he reminded.


	3. Chapter 3

Killian  
The air outside was more refreshing and he felt his heartrate calm and the pounding in his head cease. He'd keep a calm pace as they walked, the rum in his belly helping to soothe whatever had caused him to react so poorly to the restaurant.

The boards of the harbor creaked just slightly as they walked. Eventually, he'd stop at a long pier with a number of boats secured by ropes in a long line. The riggings made their usual creaks and groans, the metal clips clinking against the masts as the boats shifted with the minimal current. This was where he felt most at ease and he could finally relax. "I apologize for making you leave before we've eaten. I can make it up to you if I've not ruined the evening." He smiled as he looked at Kelly to observe her reaction to the boats. If she truly did enjoy the one time she sailed, he expected she would be happy here.

Zelena  
Zelena wanted to object at first, but didn't. Instead she thanked him.  
"That's very kind of you, thank you," she said, but didn't answer to his comment she wouldn't know him. Not immediately, at least. She thought about how Kelly would react to this, and said "Oh believe me, I'm an expert in knowing people. In my business I have to have a feeling for my customers. And I… saw you already doing your job, and we're here now," she shrugged her shoulders, "my feelings rarely fail me."  
She looked up at him when said "love", and smiled. She loved him saying that.

Once they were outside he seemed to feel better. They walked along the harbour and then haltet at a long pier. Zelena looked at all the boats anchoring, and thought that were actually a lot. Almost too many, but this also wasn't the Enchanted Forest.  
However, the sunset bathed the scene in a warm light, with red and golden stripes of light reflected on the surface.  
She sighed in comfort and said "No worries, I wasn't that hungry. And you didn't ruin anything, on the contrary - bringing me here was a wonderful idea. Just look how beautiful everything looks when the sun is about to set." She smiled happily. "I love such places. It's so peaceful and calming, no rushing or too much noise. Just the wind and the waves, and the typical clinking of boats." She turned to him and gave him a long look before saying "However, you still owe me a Dinner," she giggled.

Killian  
Aidan dipped his head slightly abashed at the mention of her seeing him at his job. _”That_ was certainly not one of my best moments,” and chuckled uneasily. He would really have to do something stellar to make it up to her. And for the loss of her dinner. “I’ll make up your dinner as well.” He grinned cheekily, and slipped his fingers through hers on his arm so that he could hold her hand in his. “Come. I’ll show you to…”

His words were cut off with the sudden rolling noise and hooting from a group of unruly teenagers as they sped by on their four-wheeled deathtraps. So much for the ambiance. “Get off the dock!” he yelled toward them, feeling like the cop again. His eyes narrowed as he watched them go by, skateboards clunking noisily between each board of the dock. “Bloody teenagers,” he grumbled almost wanting to tell Kelly he hoped the lot of them fell in, but that wouldn’t look very good on his character, and he didn’t truly wish for that.

He made an apologetic face to her as he tried to calm down and steer her toward the long pier that would lead down to the sailboats. “As I was saying…”

He stopped again when he heard the wheels rapidly approaching again.

Zelena  
Just when she felt him taking her hand, some teenagers proved her prior words wrong. This wasn't a quiet place anymore, some crazy kids seemed to mistake the dock with a race course. Zelena managed just in time to evade a skater, and heard Aidan swearing; politely. Another skater passed her, and hit her arm.  
"Hey! What the bloody hell are you thinking where you are?"  
The teenies ignored her and continued racing along the dock.  
Zelena shook her head, glaring angrily after them, and rubbed her arm.

She saw Aidan's face, and told herself to calm down. She didn't want to scare him off by losing her temper, and took a deep breath. He was just continuing his sentence when she saw the bloody teenagers come back, heading right at them.

"Out of my way, granny," a boy yelled, and Zelena tore away her feet at the last moment, taking a step back. Very close to the male racer followed a girl, and this time she knocked Zelena off her balance. With a cry she stumbled over the edge, and landed in the cold water. She was lucky not to hit any boats, and it took her a moment to get back to the surface.

Killian  
Aidan grappled for Kelly as she stumbled, but his fingers slipped through air. A quick look, lest they come back, showed the hellions racing off with laughter. Aidan cursed again and jumped into the dark water off to the side from where Kelly fell in. He went under, his shoes squished into the soft, algae bottom of the bay, and he propelled himself back up to the surface treading water, and saw her near.

"Grab on to me." He didn't wait for an answer, but looped an arm around her waist which brought her against his side. There was a metal ladder nearby for just such emergencies. He was thankful in the waning light that he could still see it. "The ladder," he said shortly and kicked his legs to bring them nearer to it until he could catch a hold of the nearest rung without worry over sinking in case she couldn't swim and fought against him.

His adrenaline was making his heart race as they were in the cold water, but he barely felt the cold. He could feel the warmth of Kelly's body against his, however. "Are you alright?" he finally asked as he could now look at her to see if she was injured. The pale blue ice of her eyes shone lighter against the paleness of her skin and the darkness of her soaked hair, and of course, her clothing was ruined.

Zelena  
Since her bath wasn't planned and happened all of a sudden, Zelena had inhaled some water, and emerged snorting and coughing. A new fontaine of water hit her when something fell into the water near her. She gasped for breath as her lungs didn't seem to work in the cold.  
And suddenly she heard Aidan's voice right beside her, and felt his arm around her waist.

She was actually a good swimmer, but it was a difference between wearing a swimsuit and being able to breathe, and spitting water, feeling the heart race and being drowned by a dress and shoes. Zelena wrapped her arm around Aidan's neck, and used her free arm to swim and kicked with her legs. Or she tried. The skirt had wrapped itself around her legs and she couldn't move.

"Damn," she commented, but realized that they were moving towards a ladder that Aidan had mentioned.  
Zelena felt for something to hold on, but that wasn't necessary. Aidan held her safely, and Zelena relaxed in his arms. She only realized now what had actually happened.  
She was coughing up some more water and nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you!"

She took some deeper breaths since she had adapted to the cold, and looked into his eyes.  
"You came after me!" It was a statement. She was flattered and puzzled, but grateful, and smiled.  
"You didn't have to do this, but… thank you very much. Are you alright?" She was still looking at him, but felt for the rung he was holding on too.

"Uhm, since you're here, I can't move. My skirt has itself tied around my legs. Can you free me please? Otherwise I have to stay in the water."  
She felt the cold now getting into her bones, and her teeth began to shatter.  
"Bloody hell, I can't believe what just happened. Did this bloody excuse of a F1 racer just call me _granny_?" Her eyes were sparkling with anger.

Killian  
When she began to breathe normally again, despite the chattering of her teeth, he smiled seeing that she was actually alright. She wouldn’t be for long if they stayed in the water, however. “Of course. I couldn’t have left you with the fishes you love so much.” He grinned, recalling her earlier statement about hating fish with no idea how anyone could possibly loathe such a delicacy, but that was her opinion.

“We’ll make the little bastards pay for the remark later.”

He kept his left arm around her so he could grip the ladder but when she asked if he could free her legs from her skirt, his eyes widened. He’d either have to let go of the ladder and go head-under-underwater to free her skirt or awkwardly switch places with her and hope his prosthetic hand could hold his weight. He thought it could especially with the buoyancy of water diminishing his weight some, but he hadn’t tested the limits that far before. Or he could attempt to lift her from the water but with one strong hand, no. Not likely to work either. Or the other option...

“Have you got a good grip on the ladder?” Seeing she did, he came closer and drifted behind her so that he could slip his left arm around the rung of the ladder, his gloved hand helping to keep her in place by the ladder. No chance of embarrassment with his prosthetic that way. “Stay put, love,” he said by her ear hoping she could stay calm despite the frigid waters. His right hand trailed down her side, over her hip, feeling for where the fabric must have bunched up. He leaned forward just enough so that his cheek touched hers, his hand still moving farther down, skimming along her leg. With the way his hand was pressed against her inner thigh, he could feel that the dress was in fact twisted around something as it was clinging tightly to her leg. “I think...” Turning his face slightly to look at her, he realized just how close he was and how this may appear, but he had to remain professional despite how nice it felt to be so close to someone, especially someone who had just admitted attraction to him. “I think... it’s the heel of your shoe. If you’d simply bend your knees...” His hand moved so that instead of pressing against her inner thigh, his fingers were attempting to pull at the material of the dress but to little avail. He made a noise of effort from pulling at the material and there was a slight tearing sensation of the fabric started to give way. “I’m going to have to rip the dress off unless you can remove your shoe.” If she couldn’t remove the shoe and refused to have her dress further ruined, he’d certainly have to go under.

Zelena  
“It’s… a long story with the fishes,” she commented. “I can’t believe I was called _granny_,” Zelena said, but calmed down when Killian said they would make them pay later for that remark. Now they had to see how to get out of the water.  
“I have a good grip, no worries about that, I just can’t move my legs. It’s like something is tied around my ankles I think.”  
She knew this situation was awkward, for both of them, but there was not much she could do. Taking her dress off would probably work, but she wasn’t ready to try that yet.  
To her relief Aidan found a way to manage things smoothly.  
She felt his hand trailing down her side and despite the situation they were in, Zelena felt her heart beat faster. By leaning forward, so he could slide deeper, she felt his cheek touching hers, and since he was pulling at the fabric, she was pulled even closer to him.  
His face was only inches away when he turned to her to tell her what the problem was.  
Zelena swallowed, and tried to listen to his words.  
“My heel, that might be it.” She tried to move her feet, and felt Aidan making an attempt to pull it off again, and Zelena did as he said, and bent her knees. This action caused her to sink deeper into the water, and she felt some water floating into her mouth. She spat it out, and tried to breathe only through her nose, pulling herself a bit out of the water again.

“I’m afraid I can’t remove my shoes that easily, they are laced up to my calves. I think there is no other option than to rip the dress off. Oh, I’m going to make them pay for causing us this trouble,” she snorted, and hoped Aidan was able to save at least to many fabric that it would cover her mostly.  
“Unless you can try and unlace my shoes that is,” she said, and brought herself into a position so she was floating close to the surface. However, the fabric was still tightly entangled around her legs, and there was probably no possibility he could even reach the laces.  
Zelena sighed, and rolled her eyes.  
“Not working, I guess. Just…rip it off please, I’m really getting cold now.” Her teeth were still chattering, and she felt her fingers getting numb.

Killian  
He knew he had to hurry. The cold of the water was starting to get to him now. If he was swimming rather than staying still, he’d be able to handle it longer, but he could feel Kelly shaking from the cold as well and knew this was going to become dangerous. He didn’t want her to go under again either.

“My boat is the fourth one down. I have towels and a good heater.” While he spoke calmly, he pulled her flush against him with his gloved hand and gripped the material as far down as he could and pulled hard. “There’s a small stove and I can make something warm to drink.” Letting go of whatever progress he made with the fabric, he pulled her knees up so that she was sitting on his lap in the water, his left arm squeezing tightly to the ladder. His fingers trailed back down her calf trying to find the laces and they were covered by the material as well.

Grabbing at the bottom of the material now, he tried to wiggle it up over the shoes or slip it off of the heel. It wasn’t working, so without another word, he let go of the ladder and slipped under the surface. Being fully submerged again, the cold prickled along his skin nearly making him gasp under water, but he only let out a few bubbles of air. He opened his eyes and went around the front of Kelly. He could barely see anything in the darkness except a bold fish that nipped at his ear. With both hands, he felt along the shoe and thought he found a zipper though covered by material.

His head and shoulders popped above the surface and he grabbed the ladder again, facing Kelly. “Never thought I’d have so much trouble removing clothing from a woman. You wouldn’t happen to have a wee knife on you, would you? In case your date got fresh without your permission?” He was sure with how close he was that he would have felt one on her by now, if she did, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask. He smiled through his effort despite the alarm he was feeling that he had nothing but determination to help him. If only he had a blade on him.

Zelena  
She looked in the direction he said where his boat was, and she eventually saw it.  
“I can see it, it looks nice. And it looks even nicer when I think of it as a warm and dry place to stay. I just hope you have coffee. I really don’t want to get warm with cocoa.” She chuckled, although it was an odd noise with her chattering teeth.  
She felt his legs under her for support, she was basically sitting on his lap, and to get her head out of the way so he could see something (what was difficult enough in the darkness), she rested it against his shoulder.

“If I had known I’d be overrun today by juveniles, I had made sure to bring Bobby along.” She left those words standing in midair as Aidan was now diving. Zelena saw some bubbles coming up, and was worried when he didn’t surface after a long while. She had held her breath without realizing it, but she had taken a few breaths and he was still gone.  
She almost wanted to call for him, but she could still feel him moving, and tucking at her clothes.  
She tried to help him, by trying to part her legs, but it wasn’t working.  
Eventually Aidan appeared again, and held onto the rung again.  
Her own fingers were stiff and numb by now, and she knew she was in danger to lose her grip.  
However, his comment made her laugh.

“Well, I made sure to manage to keep my clothes on in any case, after all, I had no idea who would be waiting for me. If I had known it would be you, I might have changed into a pantsuit and sneakers. It really gets never boring with you. But sorry to disappoint you, I left my knife with my workout clothes; directly beside a bag of flour in case someone gets the idea and use my bag again as hideout for illegal substances; they hopefully would think it’s already occupied.”  
Zelena chuckled again, it helped a bit to make some biting comments, so she was focused on everything else but the sensation of turning into ice. Her lips had already changed into a bluish tone.  
“And carrying a knife is something a lady shouldn’t do, Detective, but I might think about that.”

She realized any effort to free her was useless. Her fabrics, some expensive fashion design from Italy, were indeed of a good quality, difficult to rip apart. Especially when it was wet and tangled. Time was running out, and Zelena knew it was better to get at least Aidan out of the water. One had to get out, and if he was losing his strength because of the cold to climb up the ladder, they both were in serious trouble. Especially since he had a prosthetic hand. Zelena had no idea if it was good to be underwater that long.

“Aidan, listen to me,” she said with that special undertone that made it clear she didn’t want anyone to object, and tried not to chatter with her teeth too much. “You have to get out of the water before you can’t. Your boat’s not that far away, I can manage to swim there, I’m a good swimmer. I assume you have a knife on board. Get it, and make sure you heat up coffee first, because I really want a hot coffee, okay?”  
She had locked onto his eyes, and gave him that _don’t argue with me_ look both Zelena and Kelly could do.

Killian  
He’d heard her mention coffee before he went under and the idea was enough to put a mote of warmth in his veins, but now as he floated in front of Kelly, he couldn’t help but wonder who the devil Bobby was. It certainly wasn’t the name of her knife.

The mention of the dreaded gym bag and the planted drugs had him laughing after he got over the surprise of her bringing that up again at a time like this. Perhaps hysteria was setting in among the hypothermia, but this was no time to apologize over that again. She seemed to have said it to lighten the mood and it worked. He rolled his eyes and said, “I’m happy to oblige you in keeping you so entertained.” After her other comment about ladies and knives, he shook his head. “Everyone should carry protection. I’m cursing myself for not bringing my own right now.”

With that said, he didn’t like what she said about leaving her in the water. “You’re going to get hypothermia wading in the water. I’ll not leave you here. Follow me if you’re such a good swimmer.” He pulled at her middle to encourage her to follow him towards his boat and he would let go to tread water backwards until he saw her follow, his breath huffing in clouds. She’d find him her equal in stubbornness if she refused.

Zelena  
“I gladly accept some hours from you in learning how to use a knife properly,” she answered, regarding his comment about carrying protection. However, he didn’t seem pleased about her next words.  
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? One of us has to get the other out, and since it’s not me it has to be you!”  
But he wasn’t listening. Zelena snorted angrily when this stubborn pirate began to head into the wrong direction. Instead of climbing up the ladder he was swimming towards his boat.

“Aidan! Bloody hell, get out of the water or we both might not make it!”  
She felt anger rising, and it was giving her back some warmth. She let go of the ladder, went briefly underwater and got up again when she started swimming. Her arms felt like she was having the worst muscle ache, and she was swearing constantly, but fought to get through the cold water.

“If you don’t have my coffee ready when I’ll get on board I’ll get Bobby and _he_ will teach you a lesson, I swear! Why can’t you simply listen,” her swearing helped to get her moving, and after a few minutes both made it to his boat.

Zelena grabbed for a rope that was near the surface, and felt completely exhausted by now. She couldn’t stop shivering, and by now she couldn’t feel her arms anymore. Just a dull pain from the exertion.  
“So, and now? How are we supposed to get out now? And where’s my coffee,” she complained. She wanted nothing more then get on board, and get warm again.

Killian  
If she had the energy to swear at him, she had the energy to swim. He tried not to grin as he continued to swim backwards because she was doing it. His grin slipped when she mentioned Bobby again. Having no context as to whom this person was, all he could imagine was some big fellow she thought could rough him up. "I don't bloody know who Bobby is, but he's welcome to try. Now get your arse moving!"

Once she had made it to his boat, he reached up for the small ladder on the back and flipped it down into the water so he could climb up. He realized just how exhausted he was, but he didn't waste time with her ridiculous demand for coffee. "I'll get you your coffee," he chided between clenched teeth.

He hooked his foot under a metal rung on the boat and leaned over the edge to loop his arm across her chest, his hand under her armpit, trying not to drag her tender flesh across the edge of the boat. To do this, he had to roll with her using his own body as a shield. Once he got her out of the water, she should be sat on the surface and draped over him. He dropped his head to the surface of the boat, breathing heavily as he looked up at her. "Oh look. We found our mermaid." His left hand patted her bound legs.

Zelena  
“Bobby,” she began when she waited for him to present a solution of getting out of the water, “is someone who likes to _eat_ louts and stubborn Detectives. You will love him.”  
She saw him using a ladder to get to his boat and moved hand by hand along the rope to the ladder.  
He was now leaning over the edge, and looped his arms around her chest. Zelena clung on to his arms, and was indeed a bit surprised when he had managed to pull her to safety.

Once she was out and lying on the surface of the boat she groaned, and rolled onto her back, and off him, gasping for breath.  
She lifted her head slightly when he made his comment about her being a mermaid, and tried to hit him with her arm. She failed, as she didn’t have the strength to reach him. Instead she began to giggle.  
“You’re probably right. Now, what are you going to do with me? Hand me over to some scientists to let them experiment on me, hide me somewhere on your boat and try to steal my voice, or get a bloody knife and cut me free?” She was laughing by now.

“Oh my god, Aidan, did this really just happen?” she asked, and her teeth began to chatter again.  
“Are you alright? You stubborn mermaid lover, you should have gotten out when I told you to. See, I made it to your boat. And where’s my coffee?”  
By now she had regained some strength and could sit up. For the first time she could see the mess around her legs, and realized that it was the best to cut everything off.

Killian  
He managed to sit up once Kelly got herself off of him. Observing the entanglement of her dress on her legs, he shook his head. "You've gotten yourself more wrapped up than a fish in a net. I'll be sure to bring you along next time I go fishing." She tried to swipe at him, but missed, and a slow grin spread on his face and he was glad she was laughing, too. "Only around you, it seems chaos abounds. Don't flop overboard, mermaid, and I'll be right back with a knife."

It took some effort but he got up and walked, shoes squishing, toward the hatch that would lead below. Thankfully, he hadn't lost his keys in the water and pulled them out of his pocket. A clump of algae as well, which he flung off the side of the water with a plop. He was moving far too slowly, he noticed. Glancing over his shoulder to see that she was still there, he fumbled with the keys in his one good hand to produce the key to the door and finally got it to turn in the lock.

Inside the small galley, he clicked on a light and punched the button for the heater, sliding the bar all the way to the right for warmth, and pulled at drawers and found a good fish-gutting knife and pulled it out. Unfortunately, he pulled the drawer too hard and it jarred his shoulder, making a terrible racket of metal utensils. He swore loudly and kneed the drawer back into place. Thankfully, on boats, the drawers will only go so far out and the floor remained clear of debris. "Coffee," he mumbled, remembering, and flipped a door open to unlatch the coffee pot. He nearly dropped it in the small sink, but flipped the water on so that it could fill the pot.

There were some blankets on a bench and he grabbed one as well, tucking it under his arm. The pot was full of water, so he had to elbow the faucet down to shut it off and clumsily set it on the burner, water spilling out. More swearing ensued, but he still got the dial turned to boil the water. He turned to walk up the narrow step-ladder to the deck. Trying not to drop the knife with his fast-numbing hand, he had to drop the blanket on Kelly's lap. "Cover yourself, darling. I'll try to be quick." He would try harder to not cut her.

Placing the gloved hand on her ankle, at least that didn't tremble. He managed to slip the knife under the heel and cut into the shoe, unfortunately, but the material slipped free. He dropped the knife with a clatter on the deck and quickly pulled at the material, ripping it straight up her thigh in his effort to hurry. He blanched, and said a quick, "Sorry," and stood, holding his hand out to her. "I'll be....useless to you... if we don't get inside. Coffee."

Zelena  
“Well, I own an agency for festivities in town, I would have done a bad job if this evening had turned out to become… boring,” she said, and shoved her hands under her armpits hoping she could warm them up a bit.  
“No worries about me going overboard, my next swim exercise it not before tomorrow, so I’ll just… stay here.”  
She shivered in her wet clothes, and watched him getting up. He must be exhausted, and yet he got up faster than Zelena had expected him to, to get a knife and free her.  
“May I hope _mermaid_ won’t become the new nickname for me,” she asked when he fumbled with his keys he luckily still had, and gave her a look over his shoulder.

When Aidan had vanished under deck to get a knife, Zelena didn’t try to suppress the clenching of her teeth anymore. For an actually warm night it was now far too cold. She also didn’t have thought that the water would be that cold.  
Alone now and waiting for Aidan to return, she thought about the evening so far.  
Detective Rogers, who had shot at her, deceived her, and arrested her had become more now than a pirate under a curse. If fate in shape of Regina hadn’t brought them together, she might have waited until the curse would eventually be broken. But it could take years until that happens. Now, she didn’t have Killian back, but she had the chance to become friends with his cursed self. Things would be similar between them like in the Enchanted Forest, and Zelena could need a good friend. Aside from that she liked Aidan. He still had his sharp tongue, and he was stubborn. She sighed when she thought about herself since the rollerbladers, or whatever they used to attempt to kill them, had shown up.  
She had tried to be nice, not being so sharp-tongued like she usually was, and especially avoid swearing. She had failed. However, she had the feeling that Aidan might like that better anyway.  
If she remembered the time in the dark alley, he seemed to have almost _enjoyed_ Kelly (at that time) being so snappish. Maybe she should find out somehow.

Her hands still felt like ice and were numb, but eventually Aidan appeared again.  
A blanket dropped onto her lap, and she had some trouble to unfold it, and cover herself with it.  
“Thanks,” she said, shivering, and watched him trying to free her. She felt the material tear, and suddenly her legs were free. Literally. One of her pale, long legs was visible up to her thigh, and the cold wind gave her goosebumps immediately.  
He was holding his hand out for her and Zelena grabbed it.  
“Sorry for what, for freeing me,” she asked and tried to help as much as possible when he pulled her to her feet. She couldn’t keep her balance after she was stiff of cold, and stumbled against him, luckily only slightly so he didn’t fall.  
“Thanks for freeing me, I’d say. And coffee sounds wonderful.”  
She needed a moment to get her body moving, but she managed to climb under deck. She had dropped the blanket into the hatch as it was difficult enough to climb down with an amount of wet clothes around her legs.

Once she had made it down safely, she sighed in relief, and picked up the blanket again.  
It was already getting warm and she saw the steaming pot on the burner.  
“You really did make coffee,” she stated. “That’s so sweet, I didn’t think you really would listen to my… complaining. I’m… sorry if I was too rude, it was clearly the cold water.”  
She gave him an apologetically smile, and was still trying to cover herself completely in that blanket. She would need to get out of her wet clothes and shoes at some point, but right now she wanted to have something warm in her stomach first.


	4. Chapter 4

Killian  
The heater had produced quite a blast of heat in the small cabin. He knew better than to leave it on full, so he turned it down to keep them from going into shock. His fingers were still clumsy, but he knew from past experience, he'd be fine soon. Usually, he would just strip off the wet clothing and towel off and be warm again in no time, but not with company. He really should offer her the cabin alone first, but he needed to finish the coffee.

"Don't worry, the coffee is for me too." He winked and turned his back to her so he could focus on the coffee. It was instant coffee, an abomination, but with little storage space, it would have to do. Coffee was coffee while sailing. He poured it into two stainless mugs and then the boiling water into each cup. While he did this, he said, "You'll warm up faster if you remove the dress. There are some clothes in the drawers below the bed. They're clean, I promise."

He grabbed the last blanket, a thick wool one, and tucked it under his arm and picked up one of the coffee mugs. "I'll be above deck until you're ready for me to return."

Zelena  
“Glad you like coffee too,” she said, and pulled the blanket tighter around herself. But as long as she was in her wet clothes it would not have any effect.  
Aidan was just telling her the same thing, and was going to leave so she could get changed.  
“Wait, you shouldn’t go outside. Just… turn around and everything is fine. I leave the blanket on my back. I’m really not a prude person. And I will turn around too so you can get something warm on. Just let me get some nice offered clothes from you first.” She went to the bed and pulled out the drawer, looking for a shirt and one pair of pants. 

“Do you have a towel,” she asked, and eyed at the cup with coffee. Too tempting not to take a first sip. Zelena felt the hot liquid burn her mouth, but she didn’t care. She had some trouble to hold the cup, and had to use both hands, so the blanket slid off of her.  
“I’d say this is the best coffee I’ve ever had. Life saving.” She took another sip, but had to put away the cup again as it became too hot to hold.  
“Can you please open the zipper of my dress,” she asked, turned his back to him, and held her hair to the side.

Killian  
Aidan turned around from the ladder and watched as she grabbed the clothes from the drawers. He was thankful he had stocked it recently. There were tees, comfortable trousers for day or night, sweaters for swift, breezes, and any other thing he could fit in the small space.

He had to blink at her praise of the coffee. He thought it was shit, personally, but it was warm. He took a sip of his to confirm and felt the warmth course down to his stomach, but still not worthy of praise. “You wouldn’t be saying so if you weren’t freezing.”

Since her back was to him, he took a quick look down her backside to see how the material clung to her body and how low the zipper went. Her hair pulled off to the side gave an advantageous look at her skin in the low neckline anyway. He had to set the coffee back down and rub his now freed hand down his face. She was attractive to him and he could sense her using the situation to flirt—not that he minded. He might have done the same before, in his younger, more reckless days when he had less to lose. But she was somewhat stuck in the clinging dress, and he could see how help would make it easier for her to warm up.

Stepping over the blanket she dropped, he dropped his as well from under his arm and stopped just behind her. The space in the small cabin felt even smaller and he thought he could hear his own breathing over the sound of the heater. Clamping his mouth shut, he frowned at the zipper, eying it like his own personal nemesis. His bare hand curved around her shoulder while the gloved hand pinched the zipper pull just right. Slowly, lest the fingers slip, he drew the zipper down. His eyes went to her bared neck and he wanted to lean forward just enough to kiss her there. But he didn’t want to overstep whatever was going on here. She called this a date and the crisis situation they had just been through could warrant more tender feelings, but he wasn’t sure if even touching her shoulder as he was doing was overstepping his place. “You did great in the water, not panicking,” he said quietly. “It could have gone worse.” Once the zipper was all the way down, he slipped his hand under the shoulder material of the dress to peel it from her skin, his fingers grazing along her skin with the motion.

He removed his hand from touching her then and bent to pick up one of the blankets to tuck over her shoulders, a temporary barrier from his eyes if not for allowing her warmth. “Towels are straight ahead.” He gestured toward the tiny bathroom at the opposite end of the cabin from the little kitchen. His eyes lingered on her face as he spoke with too many thoughts in his mind that he didn’t want to address.

Zelena  
He was right. The coffee might be instant coffee, but she hadn’t lied either; right now it tasted wonderful.  
“I might agree with you if I wouldn’t be completely exhausted, drenched and cold, as you said, but still - right now it’s the best coffee I’ve ever had.”

When she turned to him, asking for his help to open her dress, she hoped he didn’t think she would take advantage of the situation they were in, and think she would make advances, because she wasn’t. At least not intentionally. It would take her a long time to open the zipper on her own, with her hands still numb and stiff from cold, and to open a wet zipper would cause her even more problems. So here she indeed needed just help to get warm as soon as possible.  
However, she did close her eyes when she felt his hand slide over her bare shoulder clearly attempting to find the zipper. She could hear him breathing, and his touch sent a shiver through her body - a pleasant one this time.

His words almost gave her a heart attack, as she was completely focused on the feeling of having his hands touching her, and listening to his steady breaths.  
“Well, I told you I’m a good swimmer, and the fact that you followed me into the water to rescue me told me there was absolutely no reason to panic. Although I tend to say, if I had been alone on a late night stroll, and ended in the water…” she didn’t finish the sentence. With her skirt all tied around her ankles she might have not made it out in time.  
“Guess you saved my life. Thank you,” she smiled, although he couldn’t see it.

She felt the fabric get loose, and felt him peeling off the wet clothes from her shoulder. It was an odd sensation. She was aware of the situation, but she _liked_ what he was doing. She barely managed to withhold a noise in pleasure, and swallowed since his trailing fingers made her feel so excited.  
The moment faded when he took his hands off, and a moment later she felt the blanket around her shoulders.  
She turned around, facing him now, while her cold fingers were holding the blanket in place, covering her.  
She looked in the direction he gestured, and back to him. Her eyes were caught in his for a moment, and she needed all her willpower to look away again.  
“I’ll… get you some towels too. Thanks,” she said, and hesitated a moment, as she was tempted to give him a kiss on his cheek - to thank him; but she didn’t. It was surely not appropriated right now.

She used her feet to pull and kick off the wet dress completely, and walked into the bathroom. She grabbed all four towels that lay there, and handed two of them to Aidan.  
He would probably could catch a glimpse under her blanket, see a bit of her underwear, as the blanket didn’t cover her completely anymore when she carried the towels, but Zelena didn’t mind. And she had to get rid of it anyway.  
She was tempted to ask him to help her with her bra too, but that might have been too much to ask. So she turned her back to him, the blanket loosely draped over her shoulders, and tried to get rid of her wet underwear. 

Killian  
She said something about towels, but he wasn't listening. He was too busy telling himself silently why bringing her to the harbor had been a terrible idea. He'd ruined dinner, but then those punks had attacked her and then they both nearly froze, and he regretted not buying proper coffee. This was a catastrophe of a first date, but he still wanted to close the space between them and ravish her, but that would be a bloody stupid idea. He'd been so focused on being methodical and following all the rules for so long, he didn't know what was coming over him lately. It had been far too long since he'd kissed anyone yet he was being stupid thinking that time was over; time to start living again.

"Kelly," he said after she turned away, but caught himself. What did he even intend to say? Nothing would be smarter. If he undressed in front of her, he'd certainly be in trouble. Shaking his head, he picked up his blanket and stomped up the stairs with a very dissatisfying squelch beneath each foot in his wet shoes.

Once above deck, he looked around himself to see that none of his slip neighbors were out and the sun had set. Darkness would be to his benefit with the only lights from the the row of buildings and restaurants in the distance and the light coming up from the hatch that led below deck.

His fingers fumbled with the buttons of the vest. He was usually pretty fast with buttons, but managed to pop one off with a clink as it hit the deck somewhere. The other buttons cooperated properly and he ripped the vest off. A whole new set of button-hell faced him with the collared shirt (thinking laces would be so much easier but when did he ever prefer easy?) but he got them undone as well, breathing heavily as his temper was getting the best of him. He wasn't even cold anymore.

Once his soaked shirts were off, he toed his loafers off and stood barefoot on the deck, already feeling much better. But he couldn't strip completely down on the deck unless he was out on the sea. Just what he'd need is someone taking a picture of him in 'public' in such disarray. The station would never let him hear the end of it. So, he put the blanket around his waist and removed the trousers and underwear. There was a line he could use for drip drying clothing and he slung everything over it. "Kelly? I could hang up your dress if you'd throw it up the stairs?"

His plan was to retrieve some clothing after doing that now that he'd simultaneously 'cooled off' and warmed up.

Zelena  
The towels still holding out for him, a warm smile on her lips, Zelena asked “Yes?” when he said her name, the cursed name of course, and looked at him, curious what he wanted to say.  
Her smile turned into a frown when he suddenly shook his head and walked past her, without saying another word. He went up the stairs, only with the blanket and his wet clothes. He didn’t even take the towels.  
She could only stare after him. What had just happened? 

“Aidan?” she called after him, but probably too low so he wouldn’t hear her.  
She stood there, and her blanket slipped out of her hand. The sudden exposal of her wet underwear to the air in the room made her shiver again, and while she got rid of her wet underwear she tried to think of why Aidan had left her so completely unexpected. She didn’t care using that blanket now, she felt the urge to go after him. 

At the speed of light she toweled herself off so her skin became reddish, but enjoyed the warmth that was produced by it. She grabbed the pants, some soft tracksuit pants, and adjusted the drawstring so it wouldn’t slide down over her hips. Then she put on a T-Shirt from him, and since she had seen a pullover as well she quickly put it on too. Some thick socks made her feel much better, and she looked up the hatch where Aidan had vanished.

She randomly grabbed some clothes for him, as well as her own blanket, and went upstairs, just when he called her name again.  
He had asked for her dress throwing upstairs, instead Zelena herself showed up.  
“Aidan, why didn’t you stay… bloody hell, are you crazy?”  
Zelena almost shouted the last words when she saw Aidan standing in the now cold nightair, only a blanket around his hips. His clothes hung over a line, and Zelena realized that he must be… well, _naked_.

She blushed, but immediately stepped closer to him to put her blanket around his shoulders. She didn’t think of the fact that she might intrude his private space, she just wanted him not to freeze to death out here! He must be insane getting out here, after what happened.

She stood in front of him, and used both arms to maneuver the blanket around his shoulders. Unintentionally her body came in contact with his when she wrapped her arm around his shoulders to grab the blanket, and realized just then that she might be too close. Much too close!  
Luckily she had managed to get a hold on the textile, and pulled it around him, backing off again.

She felt her cheeks burning, but she was more angry that he was so careless.  
“Why didn’t you stay under deck, I’m not that ugly!”  
She bit her lip when she realized that her sentence was predestined to be understood in a completely wrong way, but she couldn’t take it back either.  
Wordlessly she rummaged in her pile of clothes for a pullover, and handed it to him.  
“You should go down, I’m… waiting here until you had the chance to get dressed.”

Killian  
Instead of a dress thrown upwards toward him, Kelly walked up to the top deck with a bundle of clothing in her arms. He saw what she had chosen to wear, but she was throwing a blanket around his shoulders and yelling at him directly as she tried to help him. "I must be crazy," he mumbled, tugging playfully at the drawstring from the hoodie she was wearing, the faintest smile creeping up his face. He intended to say something about how he liked seeing her wearing these things, but he couldn't get a word in besides the protest of, "I'm not the least bit cold." Still he left the blanket over his shoulders as he stood there watching this sudden fire she was projecting at him.

She was directly in his space, not listening, still yelling and saying ridiculous things about her appearance. He frowned, wanting to protest that as well, but she pulled away and grabbed a pile of clothes to shove at him. Was she trying to tell him what to do on his own bloody boat? He swatted the pile of clothes away, the blanket fell off his shoulders, and he closed the space she made between them, and cupped her cheek. "I didn't stay down there because I was too close to doing this." He leaned forward and met his mouth to hers in a kiss that should tell her exactly how crazy he must be. His left arm pulled her closer. Since she wasn't listening, perhaps she could feel, now, that he wasn't cold.

Zelena  
“You’re not a bit cold,” Zelena repeated, and gave him a sharp look. “Are you kidding me? You could barely move a few minutes ago because of the cold. “And what are you planning on doing now, eh? Take another bath in the bay?”  
Zelena was so agitated because she was by now really worried about him. Of course he was cold, how could he say he wasn’t! He was probably running a fever or worse!

She was still holding out the clothes for him, but he didn’t take them. Zelena’s eyes widened when he swatted them away, and then his blanket was falling off of his shoulders too.  
Zelena could only stare at him, and suddenly he was there again, and _cupped her cheek_!  
She stood transfixed, her eyes locked onto his, and she thought about _what_ he was too close about to do? Zelena’s mind stopped working, and she forgot how to breathe when she got her answer to that question. He leaned forward and she could feel his lips touching hers. Automatically she closed her eyes, and without even realizing it she wrapped her free arms around his neck in the same moment he wrapped his left arm around her waist and pulled her closer.  
She didn’t hesitate or think about it, but returned his kiss with the passion she felt for him ever since, and that she was finally allowed to show him now.

When they eventually broke the kiss, Zelena felt his lips still close to him, and dared to open her eyes again. He was so close, and she didn’t let go of him.  
However, she had no idea what to say now.  
She stared at him, her head completely empty, and there was only one thing she could do, and would do - and that was to kiss him again.  
The first kiss might have been coming from him, but Zelena wanted him to know that she was feeling the same urge regarding his lips.  
She closed her eyes again, and this time _she_ kissed him.

Killian  
When they broke apart from the kiss he initiated, he smiled at Kelly, rather enjoying the lack of space between and the dazed look in her eyes. He had put that expression on her face.

And then she was kissing him back and he felt like he'd made the right decision. His hand moved to the back of her neck as he really got into it.

After parting again, he kept his arms around her and tilted his head as he looked at her with adoration in his eyes and said, "Well, I suppose you're right. My feet are a bit chilled. And I'm not wearing pants."

Zelena  
She needed to breathe after that second kiss as it had been more passionate than the first.  
So when they broke that kiss, she took some deep breaths, and found that it also helped to cool her down again. Suddenly she could understand Aidan - she also needed some cold air at the moment.  
She smiled at him, and stroke with one hand over his cheek. It was just before she broke into laughter when he said he wasn’t wearing pants, and simultaneously feeling her cheeks burn.

“I’m… aware of that,” she said, and looked down to the blanket around his hips. She couldn’t hold back a tiny giggling.  
“Maybe we should go down again. I really don’t want your feet to become frozen.”  
Quite reluctantly she let go of him, and picked up his clothes he had swiped onto the deck.  
“And maybe we can… continue the new activity we have just discovered. I have to say, it helped me warm up faster than any coffee or heater.”  
She wiggled her eyebrows and beamed at him.  
She carried the pile of clothes again, waiting for him to return into the cabin.

Killian  
Aidan watched as Kelly’s eyes sparkled in what light they had. She was delightful and happy and he could feel that emanating from her with her giggling, the way she cupped his cheek, and the way she had been flirting with him since the restaurant despite everything that had happened. He wanted that feeling as well. It had been so long since he had that it felt like oxygen to deprived lungs.  
Her smile was infectious and he grinned as well, slipping his arm around her waist as she stood there with his clothes in hand. She was offering to continue what they started and now that he knew she was willing to take him as he was, he leaned his lips close to her ear to say, “Aye, I’d like that. Your turn to warm me up, love.” He kissed her cheek for good measure and gestured at the open hatch for her to precede him so he could follow closely behind.

Zelena  
When he wrapped his arms around her waist she was pulled closer again, and became well aware of the fact again, that he was only wearing a blanket around his waist.  
She was distracted by this anyway, and when he whispered sweet words into her ear, and kissed her cheek, promising more, she felt her heart beating faster and felt a wave of heat running through her body. 

Zelena climbed down the hatch again, and placed his clothes onto the bed.   
Then she turned, and waited for him.   
_Is this really happening_, she asked herself. Could it be that Detective Aidan Rogers had feelings for her? Zelena smiled, thinking of that. Both, Killian and Aidan had a lot in common, and although she needed to explore his cursed character Aidan a lot more, she felt fondness and affection for him, like she did for Killian.  
And hey, it was just a few hours since they had met and he already had saved her life. 

She watched him climbing down the stairs, and felt her cheeks burn again, seeing the blanket waggling around his ankles. She only waited for it to slide down, but she knew he wouldn’t do that. Or would he? Torn between her desire to explore more of his body, she didn’t want to rush things. From Aidan’s perspective they just met, so it was probably not appropriate to… simply tear their clothes off and… well. Zelena knew she was ready for this, but Aidan probably wasn’t. So she made a few steps towards him, placed a kiss on his cheek and said “I’ll wait in the bathroom while you can get dressed.”   
She slid past him, and intended to splash some cold water into her face. She knew his kisses would bring the fire in her back. 

Killian  
As soon as he climbed down the steps, he was met by Kelly with a kiss on his cheek but her next statement surprised him like a bucket of cold water. Get dressed? After what he was feeling and thought she was feeling? Had he gotten it all wrong? As she began to slip past him, he quickly stuck his hand out and gripped the waistband of his own pants she was wearing without thinking. “Wait a minute,” he drawled as his eyes watched for any form of deception, or possible coy behavior that was leading her into playing with him like this. Perhaps he was being too forward in assuming she had wanted to sleep with him. Withdrawing his hand, he scratched behind his ear and shrugged as if pulling her back to him by the pants wasn't actually crossing the line even if it might be. He backtracked and changed his approach. “You weren’t shy with getting dressed around me. No need to make you hide in that small loo. And besides, I have rum. It’s fantastic in coffee and I recall your... desire for it.” He waggled his own eyebrows at her on the emphasis.

Instead of getting dressed, he turned toward the sink to address the coffee situation. Expecting his to be cold, he sniffed at it, to find it still quite warm. There was a bottle in a cabinet above the sink, so he withdrew it with the left hand and unscrewed the cap with his right.

His eyes remained on the gloved hand and the black brace showing another few inches up his forearm. He really should remove it to dry his forearm--not that he could feel any wetness in there, but keeping the skin of his arm damp for a long time wasn’t good. But he would not be removing the brace in Kelly’s presence. He hadn’t given it a single thought when he removed his shirt and in being near to her, but he usually wore long sleeved shirts to hide the brace that wasn’t covered by the glove.

The rum poured into the mug and he looked around for Kelly’s mug, where ever she had placed it. “Care for a splash?” He certainly needed the drink himself now--as a distraction from thinking too much and because he thought he could get cozy with Kelly again over their mutual love of coffee and rum.

Zelena  
Aidan had other plans as it seemed. Zelena was stopped by him by holding her on her waistband.   
She looked at him, and chuckled. Obviously she had confused him, unintentionally, but it was… cute somehow. He only scratched behind his ear when he didn’t actually know what to do. Zelena loved seeing him doing that. She turned, and came close to him again, listening to him changing the topic to… coffee and rum.   
She watched him rummaging around with the coffee and a bottle of rum, and Zelena sighed.   
She had disappointed him, as it seemed, and that was the last she had wanted.

He was standing there, working on the coffee, and turned his back to her.   
Zelena didn’t hesitate long, but quickly removed her hoodie and the shirt she was wearing under it. She smiled, and felt her heart beat so hard when she stepped to him, with nothing to wear anymore than her pants, and hugged him from behind just when he asked for her cup.  
Her arms wrapped around his waist, close where his blanket was secured, and she couldn’t hold back a low moan when her bare breasts touched his skin. She pressed her body against his back, and made sure he would realize that there was nothing anymore to cover her.

“I think I left my cup somewhere near the bed. And I’d love to have a splash, thank you. However, I wouldn’t mind to drink it a bit later.” She paused for a moment and said, while she let her hands slide dangerously near his blanket line “Are you sure you only like to have some coffee with rum now?”  
She placed a kiss on his back, hoping she had done the right thing.


	5. Chapter 5

Killian  
Aidan’s spine straightened abruptly when he felt her upper body press tightly to his back and the kiss between his shoulder blades. Very slowly, he set the bottle of rum down lest he drop it. “Forget the rum,” he agreed, his heart rate suddenly kicking up to a higher pace when he heard the way she moaned. It took all he had not to make an answering sound.

So, he hadn’t misunderstood her signals above deck and had just been toying with him. That was all fine. He could play as well.

Kelly’s hands were bumping the top of the blanket as her hands skimmed just below his navel, and he tilted his chin down to see what they were doing. “Go ahead,” he encouraged with a side glance at her over his shoulder.

He raised his hand to click off the heater, already plenty warm, and with the inside of the boat sure to become hotter.

Turning around in her arms, he cupped her cheek as he looked at how excited and joyous she was; but instead of kissing her, his hand roamed down her neck, over her shoulder, her ribs, to her waistband that he had pulled at moments before. There was no misunderstanding between them now. “You’re beautiful, Kelly,” he said as he kept his eyes on her pale blues. “Inside and out.”

Zelena  
“I’m glad I was able to attract your attention,” she teased him a bit when he put the rum away.  
She tugged playfully at the blanket, but made sure it wouldn’t slide down. Not yet. But encouraged by his words she found her way under the blanket and glided over his thighs, coming close to his private area. However, when Killian turned around she pulled her hands out, and placed them onto his shoulders.

She lost herself in his eyes, and his lips were so tempting. She tilted her head slightly when he placed his hand onto her cheek, pressing against it, and closed her eyes for a moment when she felt his hand started to explore her body. 

“Thank you, Aidan,.” she replied to his compliment, and bit her lip to suppress another noise of pleasure. His hand felt so damn good, and it felt… right. “And if I may say so - I didn’t only enjoy the evening with a charming, clever, funny and brave Detective so far, I also like what I see. Very much.” 

She let her eyes wander over his chest, and leaned slowly forward to kiss his lips. By doing so, she fumbled around with his blanket, and it slid down eventually.  
Now that he was free of this disturbing piece of wool, she wrapped her arms around his neck, and pulled him closer. She could feel him pressing against her lower body, and deepened the kiss. 

Getting rid of her pants was his job, but Zelena liked to play with him a bit, and arouse him before he would find relief eventually.

Killian  
Hearing her return sentiments and being thus freed from the blanket encouraged Aidan to react further. His breath huffed against her lips as they kissed, his hand exploring her body further. His bare behind hit one of the knobs of the cabinet and he knew this was not the place for carrying on. Bending at the knees, his hand swooped into the back of the waistband of her pants to scoop her up as he stood, his left hand across her back in support. His face burrowed into her neck with more kisses as he blindly stepped toward the bed with Kelly in his arms. He knew where it was in the pitch dark without stubbing his toes and was just as capable of maneuvering now.

There was still a pile of clothing on the small bed, but that didn’t matter. Kelly was laid down and he crawled over her, his grin meeting his eyes as he watched her. A mischievous twinkle in his eyes appeared a moment later as he moved back to plant a trail of fire down, hand groping, pinching and teasing until he was pulling at the drawstring. But, bloody hell! He frowned when he realized she had knotted the damn drawstring to keep the too-big trackpants from falling down her hips! He was good with all sorts of knots, but this sort of knot was akin to a Gordian knot for cripes sake!

He licked his lips, barely perturbed by the challenge ahead. Raising an eyebrow, he glanced back up at her through his eyelashes with a dark grin. “The pants come off now or I’m cutting them off.”

Zelena  
She let out a tiny scream when Aidan masterfully used his hands to lift her up, and moments later Zelena found herself laid down on the bed. The clothes she had thrown onto the bed earlier, were buried under her back and served like a soft pillow that lifted her pelvis a bit. Perfect for what they planned on doing.

He was determined to take her, so Zelena thought, and the feeling about him was mutual. He was now over her, and while he spoiled her upper body with some caresses, she used her hands to explore him more closely.   
At least she intended to. In fact, what he did to her felt so good that she couldn’t focus on anything else than his hands and lips on her skin.

“Bloody hell, Aidan, don’t stop,” she begged him, but there was a problem. She had knotted the drawstring to good that he couldn’t unknot it.   
Zelena couldn’t help it, and sniggered. Her fingers came to his aid, but she was far too excited to feel the calmness to unknot it herself.   
“Sorry, I did a good job as it seems. Either you give me a minute or you have to use the knife. But I doubt you’re able to wear your pants ever again after that.” 

She was still giggling, but tried to open the drawstring. “I think… yes, I have it,” she said after a moment, beaming at Aidan. She could see the impatience in his eyes, and yet she didn’t remove her pants, but placed her hands to the side. However, she lifted her pelvis so he could pull it off easily.

Killian  
They were having fun; her giggles, screams and snickers encouraging him to play as well. He knew by now that she had a wild side and would need to be handled accordingly. “I don’t care about the pants,” he growled. “I care about you. And pleasing you.” Once she untied the frustrating knot, he wasted no time in ripping the pants off of her and giving a victory grin Kelly’s way. He’d never be able to wear those again without getting frustrated and thinking of this moment again anyway.

He settled between her raised knees hoping he could make her moan or scream or both with the things he knew how to do with his tongue. And when he or both of them could no longer handle waiting any longer, he would show her the other ways he could appreciate and pay tribute to her body.

Zelena  
When he basically ripped the pants off her, she could see the wild side of Aidan. So far he had been pretty calm and showed a great deal of self control, but now he had dropped his control. Zelena liked that part of him very much. She liked him being straight and demanding, and simply take what he wanted.   
Her heart was racing when both began to please each other, and Zelena wished that the night would never end. 

She had waited a long time to reveal her feelings for him, and now she had gotten so much more. She could feel him everywhere, and she didn’t have to keep her hands off of him.  
She had the most wonderful time when she eventually felt him where she had hoped to feel him, and in this moment she felt pure happiness.   
Her body matched his movements, and the cabin as filled with sweet noises from both of them.

When she woke up again, it was dark. She smiled, when she felt Aidan’s arms draped over her upper body, and his leg half laying over her side. She heard his slow, deep and regular breaths, and cuddled against him, before she closed her eyes again.   
She could feel the boat rocking softly in the water, and heard the waves hitting the boat.  
Her hand found his, and she interlaced her fingers with his, and thought just how happy she was.

Killian  
Like clockwork, Aidan woke just as the sun was peeking over the horizon. The small window in the wall of the sailboat showed him that it was still mostly dark out, but his internal clock knew it was around six in the morning. It was the time he always woke to prepare for the day's work. It was a Saturday morning and he wasn't scheduled to go in until the afternoon, but he was a detective now and with that promotion, he had more freedom in where he was and when he showed up, as long as he did.

But for now... He rolled his eyes down from the window to the sleeping, warm woman in his arms. Without trying to move much lest he disturb her sleep, he took the moment to simply enjoy the moment. Never would he have imagined that he'd find himself in his favorite place with such a woman. The night had proven to be beyond exciting, exhilarating, and showed him a side of himself he didn't realize he still had. He hadn't felt like this since he was a younger man in his prime. Now, at 48 years old, maybe he still had it. It was thanks to Kelly for showing him that he did.

Moving his wrist just slightly allowed his fingers access to her ginger locks as he gently pushed one tendril back and tucked it behind her ear. Very carefully, he slipped from the bed. He had an idea and just enough hours in the morning to fulfill it. He just hoped she didn't mind being kidnapped.

Keeping his eyes on Kelly, he lifted the discarded trackpants from the floor which he had ripped off of her hours before and put them on. The drawstring itself was ruined so he didn't bother tying that. He didn't want to ever tie another drawstring again after that exciting frustration the night before, and he smiled in memory of it. He snatched up a white t-shirt from the floor as well, one Kelly had grabbed for him which he hadn't had a chance to wear. Slowly, he backed away from the bed and up the stairs to the top deck. A chilled breeze set goosebumps upon the skin of his chest and arms, so he slipped the tee on and set to work quickly.

Barefoot, he trod to the sides of the boat and untied the ropes from the dock, then unfurled the sail. He sat at the back of the boat where he had climbed up the ladder and maneuvered the rudder to guide the boat out of the slip and into the Bay. By six fifteen in the morning, there wasn't another boat in sight, just distant land as the sails slowly guided the boat towards the Pacific Ocean, a satisfied smile upon his face and the wind through his hair.

Zelena  
Six a.m. in the morning wasn’t a time where Zelena woke up voluntarily, neither 6.15 a.m. So she was deep asleep and was still dreaming a wonderful dream for once, when Aidan climbed out of the bed.   
In her sleep Zelena only grunted because the warm body was gone, and she grabbed for the blanket without waking up, and pulled it up to her shoulders.

She woke up an hour later, but not because she was used to wake up that early, but she was moving!   
She opened her eyes, and needed a moment to remember where she was. Strange, when she had been awake in the night, the boat didn’t move that much. Maybe the wind had become stronger.   
Then she realized that she was alone in the bed.   
“Aidan?” she mumbled his name more as she was still tired. Maybe he was on deck.   
Zelena yawned sleepily, and searched for her pants, but they were gone. Likewise the shirt she had worn briefly.   
She shrugged her shoulders, and grabbed for another pair of pants. Her dress was not in any shape to be worn ever again, although it was dry, but her underwear was still wet. Not that she would need it. 

First she went to the tiny bathroom, and checked on her appearance after she had finished her morning wash.  
With her bare feet she climbed upstairs and once she was on deck her jaw dropped.   
They weren’t in the docks anymore. Fresh wind was messing with her hair, and the wind was caught in the sails that were set.   
She was on open water. She looked around, and eventually saw Aidan sitting in the back.   
A wide smile appeared on her lips, and her bare feet made the noise of padding on deck.

“You sailed off,” she stated, and without hesitation sat onto his lap, and kissed him passionately.   
“It’s wonderful! How long have we been gone? Why didn’t you wake me?” She poked him gently on his arm, and a wicked grin appeared on her lips. Not knowing that he had had the same thought she said “Did it occur to you that you actually kidnapped me? I think I have to arrest you.”   
She let her finger trace down his chest, and added “I hope you have some cuffs on board.”  
She let her tongue wander over her lips, and gave him a seductive look.

Killian  
After a blissful hour of sailing out into the Pacific with nothing but the open sea and wind, Aidan finally saw a head of red hair emerge from below deck. He was glad to see her jaw drop as well--he'd surprised her with the kidnapping--and he chuckled about it when she sat on his lap. He kept one hand on the rudder to steer but held onto her by the waist with the other to make sure they didn't topple overboard with the winds whipping at them. She kissed with passion and he gave it back, delighted to be sharing this experience with her--his love of the open waters. It was something he couldn't explain, but had always enjoyed how freeing it was and the solitude. But, he was glad that he could share this passion with her.

"A little over an hour now, darling." The sun was still rising at his back, but he could see the light shining through her hair and brightening her face. "You were sleeping so peacefully after all that hard work last night and I couldn't bear to disturb your sleep."

When she echoed his thoughts and said that he had kidnapped her, he smirked and leaned closer to her lips with a devilish glint in his eye. "Aye, I did. But we're out on the open seas. What do you think you're going to do about it?" He was outwardly calm and acting sure of himself, but inwardly, he was still playing the game from the previous night in showing her a good time and to prove to himself that he wasn't boring, that she was capable of bringing out another side of him that he hadn't explored in a very long time and that he was enjoying it all.

When she mentioned the cuffs, his eyebrow rose in interest. He shrugged, attempting to be indifferent about it. "Of course I have. But you'll have to find them. I'll not go easily." He didn't get up as she was sitting on him, but he whispered the location just so she wouldn't have to tear apart his entire cabin in order to find them. They were his extra work cuffs just in case, as he was always prepared. When she would stand up, he would smack her arse in anticipation of whatever she was preparing. "Might as well add sexual assault to the kidnapping charges." He grinned and leaned back as he continued to casually steer the boat, eager to see what she would do.

Zelena  
“Oh believe me, I have a lot of ideas for you. Are you sure you want me to do this, dearie,” she let her finger slide deeper, circling around his belly button.   
She raised her eyebrows when he told her that he actually had his cuffs on board, and smiled in satisfaction and excitement when he told her where he was hiding them.  
When she stood up to get them he smacked her arse and Zelena whirled around.  
“The punishment for your crimes has just gotten worse. I think I have to lock you up.” She blinked at him, but chuckled when she thought about the irony that he would end one day in the same cage she had Rumple for a while. Only his presence would be far more pleasant for her. 

She went downstairs, but before she even began to look for the cuffs she heated up water and prepared two cups for coffee.  
While the water became hot she found the cuffs, and stored them into one of the back pockets at her pants. Then she filled the steaming water into the cups, grabbed a large towel and wrapped it around her shoulders.   
One cup in each hand, she made her way back to the upper deck, and handed Aidan the coffee.  
“Coffee first,” she said, “otherwise I fall asleep again.”  
She sat down beside him this time, so both could drink, and enjoyed the sun warming her back. 

“I think I would like to have a boat as well,” Zelena said after a while. “It’s amazing to simply… sail off, leave the world behind and it’s just you and the water.”  
Her eyes wandered over his body and when she looked at his right arm she saw the tattoo again she had seen the night before, but had forgotten about it.   
“This… tattoo on your arm, what does it mean,” she asked curiously and held the cup to her lips.

Killian  
He could only chuckle at her as she had told him she had ideas and he hoped he wouldn't regret it, but he thought he could handle Kelly Greene. But then again, Weaver barely had handled her in that alleyway. But no! He'd invited this wild danger onto his boat and he was having the best time since he could remember. No regrets on his horizon, he was certain.

When she came back up, he saw the towel on her shoulders and had no idea what that was for unless she was chilly. He wasn't. He also couldn't see the cuffs on her person, but perhaps she was just teasing him. He highly doubted that.

The coffee was entirely welcome and a good distraction from his curiosity and he took it gladly. He grinned as she spoke of her enjoyment of his boat, sipped the hot coffee, and nodded. "Exactly my sentiments," he agreed about the solitude.

She mentioned his tattoo and glanced down at it as he raised his arm, careful not to spill his coffee. "Oh." he blinked at it and shrugged. "Old ink from a darker part of my life." He bit his lip as he stared at Milah's name tattooed across the heart with the dagger through it. He wasn't sure if he should tell her exactly what it meant to him. It would bring about emotions he typically tried to forget about when on the boat.

But, he liked Kelly and he didn't want to have secrets from her. They were having a moment of peace out on the water, so he wasn't uncomfortable speaking about it.

"Milah," he started, his voice trailing off for only a moment before he decided Kelly should know about his past if they were to become serious. Or she could decide now if the demons of his past were worth it to her.

His eyes raised to hers as he spoke. "She was my wife. My everything. She was full of adventure and daring excitement." He grinned in remembrance. "Actually, you remind me a lot of her. Wild and free-spirited as you are." Perhaps he shouldn't have said that. Comparing her to his dead wife? But he could see a lot of similarities between them. Perhaps he had a type and Kelly was it.

He frowned and looked back down at the tattoo and pointed at the center of it with a gloved finger. "The heart represents three things." His finger shifted to the black half of the heart. "My own which I thought had gone black with her death," his finger shifted to the red side, "And her's--innocent and not at all deserving of being killed because of me and my work. And third: the dagger stabs through the heart of the man that killed her and took my hand in the blast. W.T.B. Rockford, to be exact." A sneer crossed his lips when he said the last part, and he had to take a deep breath through his nose to calm himself in Kelly's presence. That was one of her clients, though no fault of her own. His tone flattened as he continued to explain. "I got the tattoo after Milah's death to remind myself never to forget her and to vow that I would avenge her." He took a sip of the coffee again because his mouth was going dry and his heart was racing out of the sudden emotion that was welling in him.

He had to put his hand back on the rudder bar to keep them on course as they sailed parallel to the distant shore.

Wetting his lips, he tilted his head as he looked back at her, all joy he previously had shown replaced by a dead-serious expression. "And I will, Kelly. I'll avenge her."

Zelena  
He gratefully accepted the coffee, so that was something Zelena had done right, but she knew in the next moment that she had probably ruined something by asking about his tattoo. Killian didn’t have a tattoo, at least she had never seen any, or had he? Zelena wasn’t sure, as he was always wearing long sleeves. However, Milah was a part of his cursed self now, unfortunately.   
She saw his reaction to her question, and was about to say “you don’t have to tell me, if you don’t want to of course,” but it was too late for that.   
She hadn’t been able to read the name on it, and her heart sank when she heard the name _Milah_.

Rumplestiltskin’s wife, mother of Baelfire. Of course, but he had never actually mentioned her. She knew the original version of Hook had seeked vengeance because of Milah’s death, but not Nook! All his thoughts had been about his daughter.   
The only explanation was the curse. He didn’t remember Alice, but he remembered Milah, and given his feelings he clearly expressed while he explained the meaning of his tattoo he _remembered_ her being his wife.  
_If only the curse would be broken,_ Zelena thought. He was still suffering from his false memories, and he didn’t deserve any of it. However, there was nothing she could do about, except trying to be there for him. Maybe. If that was what he wanted at all.

However, she was not sure what to feel when he said she, Zelena, would remind her of Milah. She didn’t want to become a replacement for someone else he thought he had loved, she loved him for just who he was, and it was difficult to compete with someone he had loved, but be herself and never being sure if he liked something of her because Milah had been the same, or not.  
However, deep inside Zelena knew she was about to create a problem where there shouldn’t be any. As soon as the curse would be broken he would remember, but it could take years. In the worst case, the curse would never be broken. Then she had to deal with a dead wife of him. So, maybe this would become a problem.

She shouldn’t have asked. Why did she asked about his tattoo. On the other hand she just learned a very important detail of Detective Aidan Roger’s cursed past. He was still seeking revenge. For Milah. Zelena remembered Kelly’s life, and she also remembered the Rockford family. Nasty people, she had no doubt they would kill everyone in their way. They were clever, and she also knew Aidan would never get them. Even worse, if they saw him as a threat they would simply arrange another _accident_. They had done it already, and taken his wife and his hand.

When he was finished Zelena felt really bad. Not only that she had brought back this painful memory for him, there was nothing she could say.   
For a moment she was tempted to tell him who he really was, but he wouldn’t believe any of her words, and think she would be completely insane.   
She also knew she couldn’t convince him to give up on his revenge. She had seen it in his eyes when he promised her to avenge a false memory.   
So, her only option was to help him. Maybe she was able to distract him, show him that his life contained more than seeking revenge, and eventually he might give up on this.   
After all, she herself was an expert in seeking revenge, and to what avail? 

“I’m sorry, Aidan, I really am. I’m not sure if I can be a help to you, but I’ll try. That’s a promise.” Her words were chosen well, she would try to help _him_, but not seeking revenge.  
He mustn’t know that of course.   
However, the mood had changed, and she felt he might need a moment to himself. Luckily her cup was empty, and she had an excuse to give him some time.  
“I’ll get another coffee,” she said, and pecked his cheek before she stood up, and went back into the cabin. 

Once there she threw the towel onto the bed, as well as the cuffs. Now was not the time anymore to use this. Maybe later. While she heated up some more water she sat down on the bed, and tried to convince herself that he had found pleasure in mating with Kelly, and not with a replacement of his dead wife.

Killian  
It took Aidan several moments alone to really think about what Kelly said. He had also been squeezing the coffee mug so hard his hand was cramping. He took a long drink of the coffee and emptied the cup and set it down. Bending over at the waist, he cupped his eyes with his now freed hand and exhaled heavily. Listening to the sound of the breeze whipping the sails and the water lapping against the side of the boat, he found his peace again and knew what he needed to do.

The rudder was secured with a strap to keep it from moving and then he stood to take down the sails and secure them. Checking some gauges, he saw the depth of the sea and dropped a small anchor.

When Aidan quietly stepped down the ladder below deck, he had the coffee cup in hand again. Kelly was on the bed and he frowned, pausing slightly to set the mug down before approaching her. He took her hand in his as he sat facing her.

“Kelly? Please, let me explain something.” He kept his eyes on hers, his expression only semi-guarded in order to show her that he was under control of his emotions. “The things that have happened to me are part of who I am. I haven’t dated anyone since Milah because I’ve been too focused on avenging her and to keep those people from ever doing such a thing again. Because of me. I can’t stop going after them because if I do, they’ll hurt more people.” He squeezed at her hand hoping what he was going to say wouldn’t ruin everything. “I’ve gotten better at hunting them. I have Weaver on my side now and he’s the best at it.” His eyes fell slightly. “We make mistakes out of desperation, of course, but some mistakes turn into wonderful occasions later.” He edged closer to Kelly and his eyes sought hers again. ”You are helping me, Kelly. The evening and this morning have shown me that there is more to life than revenge. I can’t stop doing my job; that part of me won’t change, but I think I can focus on the other parts of what makes life worth living because you’ve helped me find that part of myself again.”

He blinked at Kelly and took a deep breath through his nose. A small furrow in his brow formed as he wondered if he had ruined everything and this wonderful thing that had fallen into his lap would be a one time thing. “Now that you know ‘the man behind the detective,’” he said slowly, quoting what she had said in the restaurant, “if that’s not what you’re looking for, I can understand.” But he hoped he was wrong because he wanted to continue exploring this new side of himself and to learn more about this other side of Kelly he was becoming so fascinated with. He hoped his eager expression had conveyed that interest to her.

His posture sagged slightly, his shoulders dropped with letting all of that off his shoulders as he waited for her reaction and his hand brushed something on the bed. He glanced down and saw the cuffs strewn there. He couldn’t fight the urge to blow air through his nose and he smirked. So she had found them.

Zelena  
The water was long boiling, but Zelena didn’t notice. She was still thinking about everything Aidan had said, and tried very hard to get a feeling for his situation. It wasn’t that difficult, she could understand him, it was just hard to figure out if he would give them a chance and let go of Milah, or if he would only focus on his work and revenge. She was confident that he wouldn’t only think of revenge, otherwise the evening hadn’t become that wonderful. Anyway, she wouldn’t give up that easily on him, especially not now since they seemed to have discovered a fondness for each other. 

She didn’t notice him coming down and startled when he suddenly appeared right in front of her.  
“Aidan, sorry, I didn’t hear you coming,” she said and smiled slightly to apologize.   
She looked at the boiling water, but before she could stand up he sat down beside her, faced her and took her hand into his.

She locked onto his eyes, and had the feeling she could see into his soul. She listened carefully to every single word of him, and felt a mixture of hope, relief, sadness and confidence. He was actually answering all her questions without she had asked him to do so. Zelena knew he wanted to make things right between them, and she swallowed hard when he indicated that she was something very good that happened to him. He was opening up to her, and Zelena knew that was something very precious he gave her.   
Regarding this very private moment she looked down at their hands that were still combined, and for heaven's sake, she would do everything to make this work.

Her head came up again when he basically asked her if she still wanted him, and she shook her head in disbelief. How could he even think she wouldn’t?   
She needed a moment to control her emotions as she was close to tears, and she didn’t trust her voice in that moment. But he needed an answer.   
She saw his eyes wandering to the side and his shoulders dropped. Zelena cupped his cheek, and gently moved his head so he would look at her again, then she wrapped her other arm around his neck, pulling him closer and gave him her answer by kissing him with all her heart.

When they parted she felt like she wanted to cry and laugh at the same time. “Don’t ever think I wouldn’t want you, Aidan Rogers. You have no idea.” She bit her lip to prevent her from adding “I’ve waited a long time for this.”  
Instead she took his hands, and placed kisses on his fingers, every single one, before she looked into his eyes again and said with a smile, “I promised to help you, and I will. But you have to promise me to be careful. I know the Rockfords, they stop at nothing, and I don’t want anything happen to you.” She squeezed his hands, and her eyes begged him. “Please?”

Killian  
When you give me your heart, it’s because you want me.

There was an infinitesimal spark of something skirting along his thoughts as Kelly declared that she wanted him. It was in her eyes, her body language, her exuberant kisses, and in the way she spoke to him. When she had shaken her head after her offered her an out from being with him, he almost thought she was going to walk away, but she had cupped his cheek bringing his eyes back to her and kissed him with all of her heart. She was giving him her heart, he realized. His eyes squeezed shut tightly at this gift of herself and he leaned over her hand to kiss it, grateful for this moment, and taking that quick moment to gather himself. She had asked him to promise her as well, and he would be truthful about that just as he had been about everything else he had said.

Taking a deep breath, he sat upright again and made eye contact, grinning in order to attempt to dismiss the seriousness of this situation. “I’m always careful, sweetheart. I’ve survived all this time.” He cupped her cheek and kissed her again, hoping to keep her from worrying about him. His forehead touched hers after his lips parted from hers and his hand skimmed slowly up her thigh. “I do have one question, love, if you’ll satisfy my curiosity...”

Zelena  
Although he promised, and she knew he would try to keep his promise, she was scared. It was not that she wouldn’t trust him to take care of himself, but he was just one man against many. And the Rockfords clearly had the upper hand here.  
She tried to hide her fear, and kissed him back, and she enjoyed being so close to him even when their lips had parted.  
She could feel his breath on her lips and she put her hand onto the one that was still cupping her cheek, while she placed her other hand onto his chest right where his heart was.

She swallowed after his question, hoping it was something easy to answer, and breathed “I’ll do my best. What would you like to know?”  
While she waited she thought about asking him to stay on the ocean forever. It was a safe place, cosy, they had each other, no risk, and enough fish to eat. Despite Zelena hated fish, they tasted delicious. Fishing would surely not be something she’d like, or feeling fishes touching her skin.  
She sighed, it was just a dream. Of course he would never give up his job for her, and she didn’t want him to. She knew it was important for him, but she could dream of it.

Killian  
He smiled, thinking of how she might react to his question and he tightened his muscles in order to be able to quickly react himself if needed.

Turning his face to the side, his eyes dropped to the bed. “I can’t decide what the devil the towel is for.” If the sudden change of subject confused her, his grin would become wider. “Of course, I’ll make a quick breakfast of sea rations for you first, but other than a blindfold, I haven’t the slightest idea what your creative mind might have planned for me with handcuffs and a towel.” His hand on her thigh squeezed playfully.

He had ruined the prior playfulness she had planned for them above deck and he wanted nothing more than to get back to the playful side of this new partnership they were building. Grateful as he was for their new understanding and the knowledge that she wanted him and he most certainly wanted her, he still considered this time as part of their date and he wanted to continue showing her a good time.

An audible gurgle sounded from his stomach reminding him that neither of them had really even eaten dinner and it was breakfast time. Coffee would not suffice.


	6. Chapter 6

Zelena  
She wasn’t prepared for such a question. Not at all. Her head came up, and she stared at him for a few seconds.   
It took her some time to even understand what he was talking about, and when she realized that he was trying to lighten both of their mood again, she couldn’t help but grinned at him.   
She withdrew her hands, and grabbed the towel, holding it between them in a playful gesture.  
“Oh well, I guess you have to wait and see. But I assure you, it’s _not_ meant as a blindfold.”  
She tilted her head and looked at him before she rolled the towel up, and held it over his eyes.   
“Too large.” She took it away and put it back onto the bed. “But I might keep that in mind. I’m sure I’ll find something that is eminently suitable to serve as blindfold for your pretty eyes.”

His distraction had worked, and Zelena felt better than before. She neither could nor would him prevent from doing his job, so she shouldn’t worry about that now. Not here on the boat just after everything between them turned out to go so perfectly.   
“A breakfast would be great, I’ll make another coffee in the meantime.” She stood up, and refilled the water; the water she had heated up before was long vaporized and the boiler was almost empty.   
A smile appeared on her face when she thought of him being so curious what she was going to do with him. 

Killian  
His eyes danced as she considered his suggestion that the towel might serve as a blindfold, but that was evidently not what she had in mind for it. Nevertheless, he was glad to see that the playful mood between them was still present.

The noises from his stomach were bordering embarrassing. He really should have eaten something at that blasted restaurant the night before, but he couldn’t regret anything that led to this.

Sighing at lack of divulgence over the towel inquiry, he stood up after Kelly was already preparing the coffee and stepped closely behind her so that his front was plastered to her back. Reaching around her to open a cabinet over the sink where she filled the pot, he hummed as if he was surprised at what he was finding in the cabinets. Unfortunately, it was usually just himself on a quick morning trip out to sea, so he didn’t have an excessive amount of food to impress her with. Just canned non-perishables and a few fruits that would last a week or two without refrigeration.

Kelly’s hair tickled at his neck as he reached over her and his left arm wrapped around her middle. “Hmm,” he mumbled over the contents of the pantry. “Porridge or fruit... fish,” he added doubtfully at the canned herring and shoving it to the back of the shelf behind some other cans of food. “I’ve got apples and porridge. Not too impressive for a perpetual bachelor.” He held up the green apple for her consideration. The porridge could be made with boiling water easily enough. “I’ll cook something nice for you later seeing as I still owe you dinner,” he said as his cheek grazed hers.

Zelena  
His warm body touched hers again while she was standing there, and Zelena couldn’t resist and moved her hips slightly, and pressed against him. She was enjoying him, and looked up what he presented from the cabinet.   
She had to laugh when he showed her a green apple. Again she would like nothing more than to tell him who she really was, she was sure both would have laughed that he had a green apple of all colors available.

Since she surely wasn’t going to have fish for breakfast, and wasn’t a fan of porridge either, she decided to take the apple.   
“I’ll be fine with the apple and another cup of coffee, thank you. I love green apples.”   
His promise of a dinner later made up for a rather spare breakfast, but how could he have known that he would have a guest on his boat.   
“I’m curious, are you cooking for yourself on a regular basis or does your job allows you more instant meals and fast food?”

After she placed the boiler onto the stove again, she turned around, and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Like me to share this apple? You can add your half into the porridge.”  
Her hands had found their way under his shirt in the meantime, and she was busy with exploring every centimeter of his back. There was a small dent right over his hips on the back, and she liked nothing more than to circle around that place. 

Killian  
Kelly turned to face him and he kept his arms around her, smiling at her as she offered him half for his porridge. He raised an eyebrow and leaned in to take a bite from the apple, amusement clear on his face as she slipped her hand under his shirt on his back. It was tickling him and doing things to excite and he made a grumbling noise in his throat as he chewed. “Keep doing that and we’ll skip breakfast too,” he teased.

Her question about how he usually ate was addressed next. “Second guess is correct. I usually skip meals; otherwise, I’d have the typical cop physique, aye? Instant meals are usually all I’ve time for.” He leaned forward to peck a kiss to her lips. “But I can cook. Not something I have an opportunity to do often, but for you, Love, I shall.”

Zelena  
When Aidan took a bite of the apple Zelena was all busy with his back. He was doing funny noises and she just _loved_ this spot.  
“Oh, I can do that for hours,” she assured him. “Well, maybe we should indeed skip breakfast, I remember I still have to _arrest_ you,” she teased back.

She let one hand wander down his ass while her other was spoiling this special spot on his back and said “I’d love to be your guest. I can’t cook, I admit it. I’m only alive because there is coffee in this world.”

She enjoyed his body for a bit longer, and sighed. “I think you should have breakfast.” She withdrew her hands again, and took the apple from him. “Maybe I should visit a cooking class, so you don’t have to eat that unhealthy stuff all the time.”

The water was boiling, and Zelena turned again and poured the steaming water into both cups. Then she stepped aside and said “I think it’s still enough hot water in there for your porridge. Would you like to have breakfast on deck or below?”

Killian  
"I could think of a number of places I'd like to eat breakfast." His eyes trailed down her body with a look of promise for later in his expression. After all the handsy groping she had been doing to him, he was getting too excited to even think of waiting for food. Nevertheless, his stomach would not cease its constant disagreement for waiting if he kept making innuendos. He needed food.

While pouring the boiling water over the dried oats, he thought over what she had said. She'd be willing to learn to cook for him! How endearing. He stirred the porridge to encourage it to absorb into the oats and started to eat it before it was fully finished, opting for staying below deck. He was too looking forward to this impending arrest to wait much longer. "You don't have to learn to cook for me, love. I can manage for both of us. It's just... why bother cooking for one?" He shrugged and spooned up the last of the bowl's contents, then took a gulp from the coffee mug. It was much too hot, but he didn't care. "I'll cook for you, next date. Promise." He winked and set the mug down. "Let me wash up a bit and then you can have your wicked way with me." He fled past Kelly toward the tiny bathroom at the opposite end of the boat to take a quick shower.

Zelena  
His eyes gave away what he was really wanted, and Zelena smiled, promising him the time to wait would be worth it. At least she hoped so.  
But first they needed to have breakfast. She cut the apple in half, and gave him the piece with the impression of his teeth.   
Apple, especially green ones were a bit sour, and it tasted awful in combination with coffee, but it was still better than fish or porridge.   
The coffee was too hot to drink it anyway, so she ate the apple first, and waited a moment before she took a sip of her favorite beverage. 

“I know I don’t have to, but Re-, I mean _Roni_ teases me all along with my cooking skills, and I have thought about doing that already. Now would be a good time for it.”  
She watched him almost gulping the oat, and she had to chuckle.   
“You seem to be in a rush, is there anything you’re looking forward to,” she teased him, and grabbed for the towel that laid beside her, as well as the cuffs, and held them up.  
“Looking forward for me to arrest you? I just hope when I’m finished with you the invitation for the dinner still stands!” She called after him when he basically ran toward the bathroom. 

Zelena sniggered, and used the time to look around in the cabin. She just had gotten another idea, and she needed something to blindfold him.   
She rummaged around in his drawers, and found a rope that would work for her. She would simply place a pair of his socks over his eyes so the rope wouldn’t hurt him.  
Then she sat down on the bed again and waited for him to return.  
“Don’t bother to get dressed,” she called when she didn’t hear the shower anymore.

Killian  
He heard her tell him not to bother getting dressed and he grinned in the cramped bathroom. All he needed to do was towel off and quickly scrub his teeth and then the door was pushed open. His eyes went immediately to Kelly as he saw her sitting on the bed with a few things in hand. Raising an eyebrow he strolled confidently into the cabin towards the bed. "I've been wondering why you haven't gotten into law enforcement. You seem so... fascinated with handcuffs."

Of the things he saw on the bed, he also saw a pair of socks and a rope. Now he was wholly confused, but didn't think much of it. He'd be finding out soon enough what sort of things she was into.

Creeping across the bed, he climbed over Kelly giving her kisses as he hoped to lean her back on the bed.

Zelena  
When the door from the bathroom was opened her head came up, and she smiled. It was nice to see him like that, and her eyes wandered over every centimeter of his body.  
“Well, ever since I was arrested I thought they might make an interesting part of… non-professional activities.” She wanted to stand up, but he was already creeping across the bed, and over her.   
She greedily returned the kiss, and her hand wandered over his bare back up and down. She leaned back down and pulled him closer. She could feel his private parts pressing against the thin fabric of her pants, and it aroused her already.   
She moaned lowly, and her hands slid to his sides, finding their way to his inner thighs and gave him some pleasure.

However, she had other plans with him. While he was still over her she freed one hand again and felt for the cuffs. She had to bend her upper body a bit to get them, but eventually she had them and without Aidan even realized it she had cuffed one of his hands.  
With a triumphant smile she looked at him, and said “I like doing that! I’m a natural.”   
She giggled, and gently shoved him off of her.   
“Don’t think I wouldn’t like what we’re doing, but you still need to be punished. And since you mentioned a blindfold…” she grabbed for the socks and the rope, and got into a sitting position, “... I know it’s not a scarf, but unfortunately I wasn’t wearing one yesterday. I’ll remember wearing one next time when we go out. Now, hold still please.”

She placed the socks over his eyes, and secured them carefully with the rope.   
A bit skeptical she was eyeing her work, and waved his hand a few times right in front of his face, but he seemed not to see anything.  
“Well then, I assume you know your boat good enough to find your way on deck. Or shall I take the lead?”  
She held onto the unused cuff and turned him into the right direction.  
“Once we’re on deck I want you to find the main mast and place yourself upright and with your back against it."

Killian  
With the blindfold on, Aidan was smirking at how adventurous Kelly was. He shouldn't have expected anything less. "Aye, I can find it," he said as he stood and walked toward the doorway up to the top deck. Carefully placing each foot on the ladder, he climbed. When the fresh air atop the boat struck his bare flesh, he was glad he'd taken them out as far as he did. Land was still visible on the horizon but it was simply a light colored line in the distance. Whatever shenanigans they got off to on the boat shouldn't be noticed unless they happened to have a visit from the bloody Coasties. Putting that out of his mind, he took the necessary steps to where the mast was and extended a leg to tap the side of his foot where he thought it was. Bingo. "Alright, you vixen. I'm here," he grumbled and leaned his back against it.

Zelena  
Zelena let go of the cuffs and watched him making his way on deck. She liked the view on his bare ass, and was impressed by his safe placed steps. He really knew his boat.  
Once on deck she made sure that they were alone, and watched every movement of him and his body(-parts).  
He was in position, and she stepped behind him to secure the free cuff onto his other wrist, tying him to the mast.

"You know, you're making a very nice figurehead. I'm not sure if I should ever free you again."  
Letting the blindfold in place, Zelena let her hands glide over his body, circled around his chest and placed small kisses everywhere. She worked her way forward down to his thighs, until she reached his private parts.

"I can't help it, but having you restrained to a mast, naked and all mine arouses me in a way like never before."  
She then kneeled down before him and took him into her mouth. She let her tongue and mouth work on him, and when she felt he was close she stopped, and stood up again.

"Naughty Detective, I completely forgot that you need to be punished instead of pleased."  
Saying that she removed the blindfold, and stepped away. Then she grabbed the towel, and stretched it out on deck, close to him.  
"I think I want to sunbathe a bit. And you're allowed to watch me."

Knowing it would probably drive him mad she undressed herself until she was naked too, and laid down on her back onto the towel so he could perfectly see her. "Now, that's nice, I hope you don't mind."  
She bent a knee, sighed, and closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun on her body.

Killian  
He was sure he was going to black out from the blood loss but he was too excited to miss anything she was doing. Kelly was torturing him exquisitely. Until she stopped. The blindfold was removed and he blinked in the sunlight at her, his brow furrowed as she backed away. "What... what the hell are you doing?" he asked, disbelief clear in his tone as she laid herself out in front of him and of course out of reach. He stared at her boldness. No, this was just wicked and a new form of torture he hadn't anticipated.

Jerking at one of his arms, he tested the cuffs to see if she had tightened them all the way or left some wiggle room for him, but she had tightened the blasted things. His mind began to race about where he kept his multiple keys. _Never get caught in your own cuffs._ The reminder from his training rang loudly in memory. He had plenty of keys. Just none tucked magically in the furled sails, god damn it. They were all down below. He even had a key in his pants pocket below deck. And in the bathroom. He groaned, not wholly irritated. Surely she wouldn't leave him like this long enough to get angry.

"Hah, hah. Very funny. Uncuff me and I'll... I'll treat you to something special. Kelly?" His eyes roamed her pale flesh. Damn, she needed a tan. He really hoped this wouldn't take too long.

Zelena  
She didn't plan on leaving him there too long, just a few minutes. She wanted to tease him a bit, and keep things interesting, being unpredictable.   
His reaction told her he didn't reckon with her simply leaving him there, and Zelena smirked.   
When he demanded to be uncuffed, and promised her give her something in return, she opened her eyes again and gave him a reproving look.

"Detective, that almost sound like you try to _bribe_ me!" She acted like she would be indignant, and made a disapproving noise with her tongue.  
Closing her eyes again she sighed in pleasure, and pretended to plan on sleeping a bit in the warm sun. She hoped he wouldn't get angry, but he deserved a little bit of punishment. Zelena would make it up to him anyway.

She left him to stew for exactly four and a half minutes before she opened her eyes again and stood up.   
"I think that's enough, Detective. Let me think, where did I leave off? Right…" She pretended to think hard about it, and tapped her pointer against her cheek while trying to remember. He was still greedy for her affection as she could see by looking at his privates, and gave him a warm smile before she kissed him. 

She pressed her body against his, feeling his _demand_ pressing against her inner thighs. "I want you to remember this, Aidan," she purred, "I want to give you a great time." She hoped he enjoyed everything she did to him, and would do, and by placing kisses again over his body she eventually ended up kneeling before him again. She took him into her mouth again, and worked on him until he was all ready for her again. She quickly came back to her feet, parted her legs for him and made sure he would meet her in the right place. Once she felt him, she moved her hips, and kissed him passionately.

It didn't take long until he was satisfied, and Zelena stayed close to him, giving him some endearment while she whispered "I'd love to uncuff you, but you didn't tell me where you hid the key yet."

Killian  
When Kelly accused him of bribery, his eyes flew wide open. Hadn't he and Weaver accused her of that so long ago? Oh, he was sincerely being punished. Instead of saying anything, he frowned at Kelly despite his eagerness to be there on the deck with her. He shook his head and pondered over how he could surprise her and get out of the cuffs, weighing the pros and cons of the only way he could possibly free himself. Was it worth it? Removing the brace in front of her when this was clearly some sort of kinky trust exercise? He sighed audibly and leaned his bare back against the mast, his eyes rolling upwards to the cloudless sky. No, he'd bloody wait. Surely, she wouldn't torture him for too long.

After an incredibly difficult few minutes that felt like an hour, he was seriously contemplating just removing the brace when her eyes popped open and began to do speak to him again. She treated him to more than he thought he'd get after the long wait and he was breathing heavily and leaning forward against the cuffs afterwards. His wrist was going to be sore later, but he didn't care.

"Oh. The keys." He took a deep breath and rolled his head on his neck as he stretched. "Look in the coffee cabinet. The drawer under the pillow of the bed. The medicine cabinet." What he wanted to do was sleep on the deck for a while, Kelly tucked against him, and not be bothered by the outside world.

Zelena  
When Aidan offered her more than one location with keys, Zelena frowned, and then laughed. “I should have known,” she only said for now, and gave him a kiss on his cheek. She promised him to get back as quickly as possible, and she did. It only took her a moment to get down, and since the coffee cabinet was the closest to get and probably more easy to search, she began there. He wouldn’t hide the key somewhere too difficult to get, but not obviously. So when Zelena lifted the second can in there, she found it. 

She went back on deck, and freed his hands.

“Aww, I'm afraid I left some marks on you,” she said when she saw his wrists. There were red marks around his wrists, and Zelena gently massaged them away.   
“I hope they are worth it,” she added, hoping she hadn’t overdone it by letting him suffer a bit.  
“So, you seem to have a lot of keys then,” she stated, and bit her lip while she was still massaging his wrists.”I guess I’m lucky then that you decided to trust me and not free yourself?”

She realized it might sound like a reproach, but she didn’t mean any. So she quickly added, “That wasn’t meant as a reproach, I’m just… guessing.” Her eyes went up to look at him, and she wondered if he indeed trust her or still thought she would get back on him for that bloody set up. “In any case, I hope I made my true intentions clear to you.”   
She gave him a smile, and let go of his wrists that were still red, but looked a bit better.   
“You’re not upset with me, are you?” She knew she sounded probably like a little girl that had been caught with her fingers in the cookie can, but she didn’t know the cursed Killian well enough to be absolutely sure.

Killian  
When the pressure released from his wrists, he sighed audibly and drew his arms forward, stretching his shoulders. He kept his eyes on Kelly as she apologized and rubbed his wrists. After what she had just done for him, she was apologizing? 

Cupping his hand around the back of her neck, his forehead touched hers and he just breathed for a moment to listen to the breeze blowing, to feel the boat as it drifted only slightly as it was held fast by the anchor, and to Kelly’s breathing. “I’m not mad at you. Quite the contrary.” He leaned forward and kissed her lips, pouring how he felt into the kiss. When he pulled back, Kelly should see in his eyes that he is quite sated and not bothered by the state of his wrist. 

“Now,” he said looking away from her towards the surrounding ocean and then squinted up at the sky. “I’d wager it’s around ten in the morning. I’ve got to go to work in a couple hours. Go for a swim with me before we sail back?” 

He’d dive off the side of the boat and resurface feeling much more awake in the frigid water. After some time Aidan would climb back aboard with Kelly, regretfully getting dressed and sailed the boat back to the bay and into the harbor.

As they walked hand in hand toward their respective vehicles, Aidan reflected on how his life seemed to have changed over night. He had more to look forward to when he woke in the mornings than work and his goal of finding some kind of clues to bust the Rockfords for good. Turning his face to side-eye Kelly as they walked, he took in the clothes she was wearing and he grinned recalling the night’s events. There was one thing missing. The future. He’d assumed that she felt the same about him as he did about her and would want to see him again for a second date. At least he hoped so. “Uh,” he started. “Aside from... well, you know where I work and where I am almost all hours of the day. Can I call you sometime? We’ll have to plan the dinner I owe you.”

Thankfully, he had left the little device in his car during the date and hadn’t jumped into the harbor with the phone in his pocket. But now he wondered if hers had been ruined.

Zelena  
No, he wasn't angry or upset with her, Zelena realized before he said it, and smiled when she felt their foreheads touch. It was a very private moment that became more sweet when he kissed her.   
He kissed her with passion, giving her the feeling how much he felt for her, and Zelena wrapped her arms around him, and put all her feelings into her kiss as well. 

He surprised her with the idea of swimming a bit, and she dived into the water right after him. It was fresh, but not that cold, and both had some fun in the water before they climbed back on board and got dressed. He was kind enough to let her borrow his clothes for a bit longer, and although she liked wearing his hoodie and pants, her shoes had become uncomfortable to walk in.   
When they reached the docks she decided to walk barefoot.

Has all this really happened, she thought to herself when they walked back to their cars, hand in hand. Two days ago, her world was grey and unpleasant, and now… she felt like she had stepped into the brightest sunlight and felt so happy. Not only today, but thinking of having Aidan now in her life was more than she could have hoped for. She squeezed his hand, thankful for him being with her.

His question if he was allowed to call her sometimes made her giggle, and then she remembered that her phone was probably damaged beyond. Luckily she had at least saved her handbag, and checked on her phone now. It was indeed not working anymore. "Seems I need a new phone, but I think I can keep my number. So… yes, of course I'd love to. And I hope you call me more often than only for making up a new dinner." 

She placed a kiss on his hand, and sighed when the car park came in sight.   
Zelena's eyes widened when he stepped to a Vehicle, that looked very special.   
"A Chevrolet Chevelle," she stated when she found the nameplates on it. "It suits you!"   
She looked at Aidan, and asked what she wanted him to ask in case he was here with his car "Uhm, would you mind and give me a lift to Roni's? Preferably this time in the front seat without handcuffs," she teased a bit as she recognized the car as the one she had been already in when both Aidan and Weaver had arrested her. "I walked here, mostly, as my car was still fully packed with stuff. And… I'm not sure I'd like to go home without shoes or underwear." 

Killian  
Aidan ducked his head, smiling and nodding when Kelly suggested he should call her for more than to plan a date. Mentioning her lack of underwear again as well and he was regretting parting, but it was all in good time that he'd see her again. "Aye, of course," he said, agreeing to driver her home.

She complemented his car and that made him glad to hear. He recalled the last time she saw the car and the reason and his eyes widened having forgotten about that instance. She joked about it, relieving the potential discomfort about it. He wasn't sure what to make of her saying the car suited him, but it didn't matter. It did suit him. It didn't have the fancy gadgets in it; it was just a simple car with a powerful engine. And being charcoal grey, he liked that about it too.

He ran his gloved fingers across the paint of the car in appreciation. "It's a state-owned car, so I share it with Weaver but I usually drive." There was admiration in his voice as he eyed the car. Sighing, he pulled the passenger door open for her acting as if he was giving in to her request. "I suppose this once, you can ride in the front," he joked. He hadn't thought of the fact that Kelly still had his handcuffs somewhere, unless she had left them on the boat but he hadn't seen them when cleaning up. Out of sight, out of mind. Not worth mentioning now. He'd only get excited again in her presence.

Once he was in the driver's seat, he fished his phone out of the console and turned it on. There were a number of voicemails that had gone uncharacteristically ignored while he'd been enjoying an evening off. He dismissed the notification and handed Kelly his phone for her to input her number.

Zelena  
“Thank you,” she said when Aidan agreed to drop her off at Roni’s. She smirked when she heard him talking about his car, he really liked it as it seemed. Zelena found that cute.  
“The state has such old cars for Detectives? Have you ever thought about buying it?” She didn’t comment on the fact that Weaver was using this car as well, and she laughed when she was allowed to use the front seat.

She slid in, and placed her handbag in the footwell, not knowing that she had accidentally put the handcuffs into the bag when she had grabbed her underwear and simply stuffed it into it.  
She buckled up while Aidan grabbed his phone. It was a very old phone, not even a smartphone, and when he handed it to her, Zelena hoped she would be able to insert her number. Aidan started the engine, and Zelena looked up when the car sounded to powerful.  
“Wow, this sounds very powerful,” she spoke out what she thought, and then sniggered.   
“I can’t believe your grey old partner can handle this car.”  
She looked down at the display again, and needed a moment until she found the contacts.  
“You’ll find me under _Mermaid_,” she joked, but thought it funny and typed _Kelly the Mermaid_ into the new contact. Then she added her number, saved it , and gave it back to him.

“I hope we can see each other soon,” she began to speak. “I think I have to help Roni in her bar so… I might be busy in the evenings. I assume you’re off at some point, I’m sure I can talk her into giving me an evening off. Just call me, and let me know soon so I can find someone who backs for me.”

It was a short drive, and soon Aidan stopped the car right in front of the bar. Zelena sighed, she didn’t want to get out, she wanted to stay a bit longer with him, but she knew he had to go to work. And actually, he had stopped where he wasn’t supposed to stop.  
Zelena leaned over to him, and kissed him passionately before she opened the door.  
“Thanks for the wonderful time, Aidan. I can’t wait to see you again. I’ll see to it to have a new phone by tomorrow evening - I await that you’re the first one who calls me then.” She gave him a very hearty smile, blew another kiss at him, grabbed her handbag and got out.

She even waited until he drove off and waved at him when he entered the police station.   
Then she headed towards the door, fumbled for the key, and saw the handcuffs.  
She smiled, and thought she would keep them until they meet again.   
“Regina, I’m back,” she called when she entered the bar.  
She had a lot to tell this time. Good things to tell.

Killian  
Kelly had planted the thought of Aidan potentially buying the Chevelle. It wasn't something he had considered before. The car was a classic and it deserved to be owned by one person, not by the state. What if it was assigned to someone else? Normally, he would say, _that's life_ and move on, but he did enjoy the car. "It's a civilian's unmarked car. To remain inconspicuous during stake outs and other detective work." He gestured with a non-committal explanation without getting into too many details. "I'm meant to blend in with it." And he realized how ludicrous that was with a classic car like a 1970 Chevelle Super Sport. "I'll think on buying it," he said as an after thought. What else did he really have to spend money on but his apartment, the sloop and whenever he felt like eating more than a quick meal.

He glanced at Kelly as he drove toward Roni's and grinned as she fiddled with his phone and mentioned the mermaid joke again, not expecting her to actually list her number under such a thing. Perhaps he could spend money on future dates with her.

He laughed when she got out of the car and expressed her hope that he would be the first to call her on her new phone. "I'll do that." He'd make sure he committed the time to do so even with a busy schedule ahead. As she walked off, he raised a hand in farewell and drove on, the smile remaining on his face.

Later that evening, when he was searching through his phone for Kelly's number, he didn't find it under Kelly or Greene and he had a momentary thought that maybe she didn't... continuing to press the Down button on the old phone and his eyes caught sight of something out of place. Two Up buttons later, his eyes locked on _Mermaid, Kelly the_ with the odd way his phone listed the surname of the contact first. "Bloody hell," he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. He pressed the button and it rang.


End file.
